Army imports suicide prevention program from Europe

Army imports suicide prevention program from Europe

Published: Thursday, March 20, 2008 10:50 AM CDT
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Sarah Maxwell, U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine

FORT DETRICK, Md. - In an effort to keep Soldiers and their family members spiritually, emotionally and mentally fit, the Suicide Prevention Task Force process developed in Europe is being implemented at some Army installations in the continental United States.

U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Medicine Europe representatives briefed military medical professionals on their SPTF efforts at installations across Europe during a presentation last summer at CHPPM's annual Force Health Protection Conference. Since then, CHPPM is replicating the process at Fort Lewis, Wash., and other CONUS sites to be determined.


The process is not intended to replace the current Army G-1 Suicide Prevention Program - it is intended to focus on prevention strategies. The strategies pull together existing installation resources that address personal issues such as mental health, relationships, finances - issues that are known to contribute to suicidal thinking.

"The Army already has a suicide intervention model established - that's not what we are focused on," said Kym Ocasio chief of health promotion and wellness at CHPPM West, Fort Lewis, and one of the developers of the process.

"As well, the Army already has a lot of great health and wellness programs. We don't think brand new ones need to be developed, but we need to standardize what we already have," she added.



In addition to standardization, Ocasio and the other health promotion coordinators at CHPPM Europe wanted to move the focus away from the act of suicide to those interventions that may stop people from taking their own lives.

"We believe the SPTF needs to focus on the word 'prevention,' which is about more than reviewing suicide statistics. We look at things like dealing with depression and loneliness, stress management and the many factors that influence behaviors before a person considers suicide," she emphasized. "The SPTF looks at what resources are available, how they are accessed, and how they are marketed and integrated within the community."
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