Welcome to PERU's monthly newsletter for the Northwest Pennsylvania (NW PA) Veteran Suicide Prevention Program. We look forward to updating you every month with program news, training events, community outreach activities, and evidence-based best practices for reducing suicidality and increasing social connectedness and resilience among Veterans.

We encourage you to connect with us through Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter and share the news of this program with colleagues, friends, and relevant community organizations. Your participation is greatly appreciated.

Take Our Suicide Awareness Survey

We are collecting information about beliefs, attitudes, and experiences involving suicide and mental health issues. You are encouraged to take the survey and share it within your personal and professional networks.

Read time: 1 minute

The Role of the Gatekeeper in Reducing Veteran Suicide

Our work in Veteran suicide prevention and gatekeeper training has been published in the fall/winter issue of Positive Approaches Journal. We are thankful to our program partner, Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services, for sharing our work with a larger audience.

Read time: 5 minutes

Veteran PTSD and MDMA-assisted Therapy

This article summarizes a recent journal club presentation and interview with Dr. Ingmar Gorman, co-founder of Fluence, a continuing education organization in the emerging field of psychedelic therapy.

Read time: 5 minutes

Firearm Suicide Rates, by Race and Ethnicity

We are forwarding the CDC’s distribution of data included in the December 1, 2023 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). We encourage everyone to review this information, share it within personal and professional networks.

Read time: 3 minutes

How Veterans Can Cope with Holiday Loneliness

Our Veterans, like most people, can become susceptible to loneliness during the holidays. Having the right tactics and strategy can be a real help for Veterans and caregivers.

Read time: 3 minutes

We accept relevant contributions for our events calendar and news blog. Members may also share program-related training, events, and activities on our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

Empowering the Behavioral Health Workforce to Meet the Needs of Service Members, Veterans, and their Families

December 21, 2023, from 2:00–3:30 PM

ONLINE

There is a growing demand for military culturally responsive services for service members, Veterans, and their families (SMVF). This learning community will examine strategies to strengthen and empower the behavioral health workforce to meet the unique needs of SMVF. The learning community will meet monthly beginning in December 2023 via Zoom.

Integrating Trauma-Informed Care into Suicide Response (ITIC)

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, from 11:00 AM-12:00 PM

ONLINE

The ITIC course describes the role of trauma in both risk for suicide behaviors and in coping with suicide loss. It is a one-hour virtual training primarily designed for those who work with people at risk for suicide, such as health care providers and social service professionals. The curriculum covers the role of trauma in suicide risk, the SAMHSA principles of trauma-informed care, as well as specific trauma-informed strategies to utilize with survivors of suicide.

To register, contact Patti Tanner at pag109@pitt.edu.

New Training Opportunities Available

Visit our website to learn about our newly expanded menu of training classes. In-person and online offerings include:

• QPR (Question. Persuade. Refer.)
• CALM (Counseling on Access to Lethal Means)
• Applied Suicide Interventional Skills Training (ASIST) *In-Person Only
• Introduction to Military Culture
• Overview of Moral Injury (MI)
• An Epidemic in Our Ranks: Military Sexual Trauma (MST)

Please share with your personal and professional networks throughout the region. Contact us to set up training for your organization, association, or business.

Fully funded by the CDC, this program aims to reduce Veteran suicide attempts, injuries, and deaths by 10% (on average) over five years in the fifteen counties of Northwestern Pennsylvania. By improving access to treatment and support services, we will increase awareness of Veteran suicide risk through suicide prevention community activities and training opportunities.

Our Vision: The work of the Northwest Pennsylvania Veteran Suicide Prevention Program will result in resident Veteran suicides being reduced to zero by the end of the project period (August 31, 2025).

Whether you identify as a healthcare provider, community organization, or Veteran, there are several opportunities through the NW PA Veteran Suicide Prevention Program to connect to resources, participate in educational training, and promote harm reduction strategies for at-risk Veterans.

We are actively recruiting healthcare and community partners to work with us in meeting our goals and objectives. Help us:

• Create community-based programs and services that foster supportive environments, promote social belonging and community connections, and offer effective coping and resilience-building strategies.
• Deliver healthcare-related programs and services that identify and support people at-risk and strengthen access to and delivery of care.
• Reduce misuse of firearms and prevent suicide by firearms.
• Offer suicide awareness training for community members and Veterans.
• Provide activities that promote Veteran culture and connection within communities.

The list above represents a sample of all available opportunities. Please contact us to connect with a program specialist and learn more.

To learn more, and meet our program implementation team, visit the NW PA Veteran Suicide Prevention website at theresilientveteran.org.

Need Help? Know Someone Who Does? Contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or use the online Lifeline Crisis Chat. Both are free and confidential. You'll be connected to a skilled, trained counselor in your area.