Suicide Prevention
The Indian Health Service (IHS) awarded a five-year grant in the amount of $400,000 annually ($2,000,000 total) for a component of the Substance Abuse and Suicide Prevention (SASP) Program: Suicide Prevention, Intervention, and Postvention (SPIP).
The overall goal of UMUT’s Protect Life initiative for SPIP is to leverage evidence-based strategies to increase access to comprehensive, culturally appropriate services and programming that address suicide prevention among UMUT youth and adults.
Objectives include:
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Develop a community suicide response team that meets at least quarterly; Update and publish the Community Resource Directory, online and in print; Formalize a community suicide response plan and train all Tribal departments / 600 employees; Establish suicide prevention policies and protocols in all Tribal departments.
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Develop a website for Mógúán promoting services / hours; Finalize contract with Four Winds to provide culturally-responsive telehealth; Establish a lending library of devices and jet packs / hot spots to enable telehealth, offer trainings and technical support; Build a relationship with Indian Health Services to facilitate coordination; Engage all UMUT Mental Health and Substance Abuse staff in ongoing training related to delivering trauma-informed care, expanding capacity; Provide behavioral healthcare through Mógúán, Axis and Four Winds, each offering Native American therapists and implementing evidence-based strategies such as Comprehensive assessment; Crisis assessment and intervention; Illness management and recovery skills; Individual supportive therapy; Substance use disorder treatment; Peer and family support; Employment support services; Assistance with activities of daily living; Connection and intervention with support networks and recovery support services; Care management and case coordination; and Psychotropic medication for treatment of SMI and medication for other medical conditions prescription, administration, and monitoring.
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Deliver evidence-based safeTALK trainings each quarter, reaching 100 individuals annually; Train 600 employees of UMUT in new policies and procedures related to suicide ideation; Disseminate updated Community Resource Directory; Create and disseminate flyers and posters detailing referral strategies and available services.
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Establish an Adventure Club program for UMUT youth meeting on weekends; Engage youth in outdoor activities, integrating Ute language and Elder mentors; Design policies and procedures for face-to-face outreach and support to youth and families following suicide; Recruit youth and Elders to participate on the community suicide response team; Showcase UMUT suicide prevention films (youth-created) in local schools; Deliver youth programming that builds relationships and prevents suicide during lunch hour in local schools (COVID-19 regulations permitting); Bolster the UMUT Youth Council, which was derailed by COVID-19.
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Integrate new suicide prevention policies and procedures into all Tribal departments through ongoing training and clearly displayed posters and flyers detailing steps; Turnkey training of trainer to build capacity for continued safeTALK trainings; Contract with capacity building specialists that research and pursue additional funding leveraging evaluation data and qualitative result.