College Highlights & News
NEWS
Institute of Rural Health Awarded $1.5 million for youth suicide prevention
September 2009
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has awarded $1.5 million to Idaho State University’s Institute of Rural Health for youth suicide prevention projects over the next three years.
The grant will help fund crucial suicide prevention efforts to reduce suicide attempts and completions among 10-24-year-olds. Projects will include training adults to identify warning signs of suicide in children and teens, supporting volunteer associations in self-sufficiency, providing prevention materials to schools, and assisting public safety, health and mental health providers in conducting suicide risk assessments. A series of special Awareness to Advocacy Academies will be held for advocates as well as public safety, health and mental health professionals.
“Our goal is to address Idaho’s high suicide rate by building skills to help children and youth at risk,” said Beth Hudnall Stamm, Ph.D., principal investigator for the project. “Idaho currently ranks seventh in the Nation for our rate of suicide overall, and rates for young people are much higher. Suicide ranks as the second cause of death for Idaho’s teens and young adults.”
“In one year alone nearly 4,600 children and adults aged 10 to 24 die by suicide,” said SAMHSA Acting Administrator Eric Broderick, DDS, MPH. “It is the third leading cause of death among that age 18 and younger and a national public health problem that demands immediate action.”
Idaho’s award, as well as similar grants for 17 other states, are part of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act funding for youth suicide prevention across the country. It will be administered by SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services.
IRH Researcher Receives Mental Health Award
September 2009
Idaho State University’s Institute of Rural Health Senior Research Associate Ann Kirkwood has been named a winner of the prestigious Voice Award, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s Center for Mental Health Services announced recently. The award recognizes Ms. Kirkwood’s work in raising awareness and understanding of mental health issues.
The 2009 Voice Awards ceremony will take place at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, CA, on Wednesday, October 14. The event will bring together people from the entertainment industry and mental health consumer and advocacy communities for a night that celebrates increased awareness of mental health issues and the power of recovery.
Kirkwood has been working on mental health initiatives in Idaho since 1997. She managed one of the Nation’s first anti-stigma media campaigns, which garnered a Peabody Award. She also designed and directed a mental health education program called Better Todays, Better Tomorrows. Most recently she has been director of Idaho Youth Suicide Prevention and the Idaho Suicide Prevention Hotline Research projects at the Institute of Rural Health.
She has served as president of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Boise Affiliate, on the Idaho Suicide Prevention Action Network board, on the Governor’s Council for Suicide Prevention and the state Board of Psychologist Examiners. Nationally, she serves on a consumer/advocate committee to advise the Lifeline suicide prevention crisis call network and recently was a member of a communication committee for NAMI National. She is a member of the Steering Committee for the National Institute of Mental Health Outreach Partnership Program.
“People with mental illnesses need advocates who can speak out when circumstances jeopardize an individual’s inability to recover and thrive,” Kirkwood said. “I hope in some small measure my work has helped people with mental illnesses in Idaho live full lives and have a voice in their communities. As a person with a mental illness, I know what it’s like to overcome stereotypes and I’ve tried to address this in my professional and volunteer work.”
Sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Voice Awards recognize the accomplishments of consumer advocates who are working to promote the social inclusion of people with mental health problems and the real possibility of recovery. Voice Awards also are given to honor writers and producers who incorporate dignified, respectful and accurate portrayals of individuals with mental health disorders into film and television productions.