CONTENTS

About This Course

Table of Contents

1. The Nature and Scope of Suicide
2. Recognizing the Progressive Development of Suicide
3. Substance Abuse as a Major Contributor to Suicide
4. Suicide Across the Life Span
5. Special Populations and Suicide Risk
6. Prevention and Early Intervention for Suicide and Substance Abuse Problems

Supplements
References
Resources

Holding the Lifeline
A Guide to Suicide Prevention

Assessing Community Readiness to Implement Research-Based Prevention Programs

Assessing Readiness*		Community Action
Readiness Stage	Community Response	Ideas
1. No awareness	Relative tolerance of drug abuse	Create motivation. Meet with community leaders involved with drug abuse prevention; use the media to identify and talk about the problem; encourage the community to see how it relates to community issues; begin preplanning.
2. Denial	Not happening here, can't do anything about it
3. Vague awareness	Awareness, but no motivation
4. Preplanning	Leaders aware, some motivation
5. Preparation	Active energetic leadership and decisionmaking	Work together. Develop plans for prevention programming through coalitions and other community groups.
6. Initiation	Data used to support prevention activities	Identify and implement research-based programs.
7. Stabilization	Community generally supports existing program	Evaluate and improve ongoing program.
8. Confirmation/Expansion	Decisionmakers support improving or expanding programs	Institutionalize and expand programs to reach more populations.
9. Professionalization	Knowledge of community drug problem; expect effective solutions	Put multicomponent programs in place for all audiences.

* Reprinted from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2003). Preventing drug use among children and adolescents: A research-based guide for parents, educators, and community leaders. 2nd Ed. (NIH Publication No. 04-4212[A]). Bethesda, MD: Author.

* Plested, B., Smitham, D., Jumper-Thurman, P., Oetting, E., & Edwards, R. (1999). Readiness for drug use prevention in rural minority communities. Substance Use and Misuse, 34 (4 and 5), 521-544.