HANCOCK COUNTY — A couple years ago, a Hancock County woman got a call from an out-of-state relative in distress on Thanksgiving Day.
Thanks to the suicide prevention training the woman had received through Healthy365, a community health initiative, she was able to identify the signs in her relative and knew what to say to talk them through their emotions that day.
“That person was able to have a really productive conversation with that family member, and ultimately ended up saving their life,” said Amanda Hinkle, system of care coordinator for Healthy365, which offers the suicide prevention course called QPR, for “Question, Persuade and Refer.”
“We receive feedback from people who have attended the QPR training with similar stories, who say, ‘If I hadn’t taken that training I wouldn’t have known what to say or do,’” Hinkle said.
The next QPR training will take place virtually from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12.
It’s not too late to register for the class, which is open to anyone 18 and older. The Hancock Health Foundation offsets the cost so the training can be offered for free.
“We started the QPR training in July of 2018. Since then, we have trained about 1,600 people here in Hancock County,” Hinkle said.
“QPR” refers to the three emergency steps people can take to intervene with someone who may be suicidal. Public health experts liken it to CPR, the emergency intervention undertaken to save someone suffering from a heart attack.
Those who complete the class are known as gatekeepers.
“We need to have thousands of gatekeepers in our community,” Hinkle said. “By having as many people trained as possible, it really is the significant piece of the puzzle that will help lower (suicide) rates.”
The QPR training teaches people how to recognize suicidal tendencies and how to approach and help a person who may be suicidal.
“Whether it is verbal cues, situational cues or behavioral cues, a gatekeeper would be able to see those red flags, and QPR teaches them to recognize those. It also teaches them how to approach the person,” Hinkle said.
“It empowers people really to be direct with the person, to ask them straightforward questions. You learn the more direct you are with somebody, the more likely you are to get an honest answer from them.”
Healthy365 has provided the training to staff members in all four Hancock County school districts.
Kim Kile, counseling director at Greenfield-Central High School, said it’s has been a great tool to help teachers and staff know what signs to look for in students who are struggling so they can get them the help they need.
“I appreciate that as a county we are all using the same language and the same approach to suicide prevention,” she said. “When the community as a whole is trained to watch out for others, we’ve created a community of caring, which benefits us all.”
Starting this year, the training will be offered quarterly, which means there will be three more opportunities to take the class this year, but Hinkle encourages anyone who is interested to sign up as soon as possible.
“It’s about learning how to simply offer hope. That’s the number one message we hope people take home from the training,” Hinkle said.
Mental health experts say the world needs hope more than ever before. A growing number of people have struggled with mental health over the past year, they say, as the world has grappled with the stresses and fallout from the ongoing pandemic.
The suicide rate in Hancock County doubled last year, when the coroner listed 10 suicides in 2020, compared to five in 2019.
While national suicide statistics for last year won’t be available for another couple of years, Hinkle imagines the pattern will reflect the local trend, with suicides jumping at an alarming rate.
Suicidal tendencies can strike anyone, Hinkle said, especially in a world turned upside down by unforeseen changes.
“There are so many factors that people may encounter — somebody going through a marital issue, a financial issue, the loss of a job, loss of a spouse, being diagnosed with a terminal illness — so many things,” she said.
“Everyone handles things differently, and when it all kind of piles up, sometimes your bucket spills over and it’s hard to cope.”
The QPR training teaches people to think of the prevention training not only in relation to their friends or family, but also their neighbors, co-workers and complete strangers.
“It could be somebody who walks past you on the side of the street, somebody you’re in line with at Walmart. If you see a struggle, you’re better equipped to help them,” Hinkle said.
The training helps clear up the stigma around mental health and suicide, she said, making it something that’s easier to discuss openly.
“The training can be somewhat awkward and really difficult and emotional, but at the end of the training people are opening up and sharing stories. It’s just a matter of getting people to talk about it,” Hinkle said.
In addition to small-group QPR training, Healthy365 instructors are also willing to offer the training in group settings like a business or church. Any group that’s interested should contact the Healthy365 office to schedule a session: 317-468-4231 or [email protected].
TRAINING SCHEDULED FRIDAY
Slots are still available in the Healthy365 QPR training class scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12. Registration can be completed online at healthy365.in/QPR. Deadline to register is 4:30 p.m. today (Thursday, Feb. 11).
HOW TO GET HELP
There are a number of resources available for those with suicidal tendencies or other mental health challenges.
Healthy365 Connection Center
317-468-4231
BeHealthy365.org
Mental Health Partners
317-462-2877
MentalHealthPartnershc.com
National Suicide Hotline
800-273-8255
