Look below to read the New Suicide Prevention Education Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    JUNE 14, 2010

TALLAHASSEE- Governor Charlie Crist signed into law Senate Bill 434, sponsored by Senator Sobel, and House Bill 1061, sponsored by Representative Heller. This legislation adds suicide prevention education to school districts’ In-Service Master Development Plans as an option for school personnel to fulfill their individual professional development plans. Certificated personnel may use in-service points for re-certification purposes. The new legislation does not mandate training, nor does it cost anything, as there are numerous free, online trainings and in-person trainings that school personnel can utilize.

The Statewide Office of Suicide Prevention was established in law in 2007 and is charged with guiding Florida's suicide prevention efforts by developing mechanisms for implementing the Florida Suicide Prevention Strategy, providing oversight, building capacity, creating policy, and mobilizing communities, with the overall goal of lowering suicidality and improving quality of life for Floridians.

                                Florida Office of Suicide Prevention

On May 22, 2007 after four years of hard work The Florida Legislature finally passed  a bill creating the Office of Suicide Prevention within the Office of Drug Control in the Governor's Office.  The Florida Suicide Prevention Task Force and Florida Suicide Prevention Coalition worked hard to get this bill passed.  Thank you to many advocates, legislators and State officials who worked with the two organizations to accomplish this goal.

The Bill also created the State of Florida Suicide Prevention Coordinating Council with 28 voting members and many other non-voting members.  Together all the members of the Council will collaborate to implement the  Florida Suicide Prevention Strategy created in 2005 in the Office of Drug Control. 

FISP's Executive Director Jackie Rosen is proud to have been appointed as a voting member for the next three years.  For more information click http://www.flgov.com/pdfs/ODC-FlaSuicidePreventStrategy.pdf

Suicide Prevention Education Legislation

WHAT DOES THIS BILL DO?

This amendment to the current statute adds suicide prevention education to school districts’ professional development plans as an option for school personnel to choose from when deciding how to fulfill their in-service training requirements.  It does not mandate training, nor does it cost anything. It is a non-controversial amendment to the current statute that simply puts suicide prevention education on the radar screen as an option for school personnel if they want it

This can be accomplished at no cost as there are numerous free, online trainings that teachers and administrators can utilize.  Two trainings that we highly recommend, Making Educators Partners in Youth Suicide Prevention and Youth Suicide Awareness and Prevention, can be found on our website at: http://www.helppromotehope.com/resources/schools.php

PROPOSED LANGUAGE:

An act relating to student discipline and school safety; amending s. 1006.07, F.S.; requiring district school boards to provide access to suicide prevention education for instructional and administrative personnel; requiring use of resources approved by the Statewide Office for Suicide Prevention; providing an effective date.  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

Section 1. Subsection (7) is added to section 1006.07, Florida Statutes, to read: 1006.07 District school board duties relating to student discipline and school safety.--The district school board shall provide for the proper accounting for all students, for the attendance and control of students at school, and for proper attention to health, safety, and other matters relating to the welfare of students, including:

7) SUICIDE PREVENTION EDUCATION.—Beginning with the 2010-2011 school year, provide all instructional and administrative personnel with access to educational resources regarding suicide prevention which are approved by the Statewide Office for Suicide Prevention through the school district professional development plan under s. 1012.98.

Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.

SENATE SPONSOR: SB 434/ Senator Eleanor Sobel, District 31

HOUSE SPONSOR: HB 1061 / Representative Bill Heller, District 52    

THE NEED FOR THIS LEGISLATION:

Suicide was the 9^th leading cause of death in Florida in 2008:

• In 2008, 2,723 Floridians died by their own hand
• For Florida’s youth, suicide is the third leading cause of death
• More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza and chronic lung disease combined
• Across the U.S., approximately 11 young people between the ages of 15-24 die every day by suicide.
• Every 2 hours and 15 minutes a person under the age of 25 completes suicide somewhere in the U.S. (National Vital Statistics Reports, National Center for Health Statistics; www.cdc.gov/nchs)
• The average cost to the state of completed suicides in Florida from 1999-2003 was $2.2 billion (Calculated by the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)
• Florida’s suicide rate is more than double its homicide rate
• Suicide is  preventable

Suicide is a widespread public health problem that affects people at all levels of society.  It is the third leading cause of death for young people ages 10-24.  In 2007, 231 youth died by their own hand.  In the recent Youth Risk Behavioral Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, Florida students were asked four questions related to suicidal ideation.  Their responses indicated that 27.3% of students surveyed in grades 9-12 have experienced possible clinical depression in the past 12 months, 14.5% considered suicide, 11.6% made a plan to commit suicide and 8.5% reported they had made an attempt. 

Suicide is a national health concern that affects families from all races, cultures and economic backgrounds.  While there is no specific profile or “suicidal type”, a person who is considering suicide often exhibits behavioral or verbal warning signs.  If the significant people in a young person’s life are able to recognize these signs and act on them, many lives could be saved.  According to The Jason Foundation, a national organization for youth suicide prevention, an effective means of combating the problem is to create a “triangle of prevention’ by educating the key people in a young person’s life: parents, teachers, and friends.  It is therefore appropriate for the Legislature to enact this proposed bill to ensure that suicide prevention education is presented to school districts as an option for in-service credit hours. 

LIST OF EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE OPTIONS:

1. The Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide FREE online teacher training: http://spts.pldm.com/
2. The Jason Foundation FREE online teacher training: http://www.jasonfoundation.com/life/login.aspx

3. Florida Initiative for Suicide Prevention provides Gatekeeper Training (Learning warning signs of suicide) –free if a trainer comes into the schools (Contact Jackie Rosen, jrosenfisp@aol.com )
4. Alachua County Crisis Center provides Gatekeeper Training
5. Annual Florida Suicide Prevention Symposium (registration costs)
6. Annual Florida Prevention Conference (registration costs)
7. Parents and Teachers as Allies (In-Service Mental Health Education for School Professionals) presented by National Alliance for Mental Illness- 2 hour course that reduces the stigma of mental illness (only cost is the books which are $1 a piece) For more information, please contact: Dana Crud at danac@nami.org / 703-600-1117   
8. Florida School Counselor Association can provide free online trainings statewide

(Contact the Office of Suicide Prevention at 850-922-0498 if additional resources are needed or visit www.HelpPromoteHope.com and click on the Teachers and Schools Resources page)

For more information and LINKS CLICK  http://www.HelpPromoteHope.com

History of Suicide Prevention in Florida

Florida State Task Force on Suicide Prevention

FISP's former Executive Director/CEO Rene Barrett, with SPAN colleagues, Pam Harrington & Laura Meyer, were instrumental in initiating the Florida State Task Force on Suicide Prevention. Originally chaired by James R. McDonough, Director, Office of Drug Control Policy.  The task force targeted reducing suicide in Florida by 1/3 by the year 2010. Call our office for a copy of the document they worked on or go to  the Florida Suicide Prevention Strategy Paper. (954) 384- 0344.  FISP has worked with Sen. Nan Rich to make Suicide Prevention a state of Florida priority.

Florida Suicide Prevention Coalition (FSPC)

FISP was also a founding member of the Florida Suicide Prevention Coalition (FSPC)

which consists of many organizations and individuals throughout the state working together to inform our legislators of the needs of Florida's citizens concerning suicide prevention.  FSPC holds and Annual Suicide Prevention Day in the Capital to educate our legislators. The FSPC website http://www.floridasuicideprevention.org/ has comprehensive  information regarding legislative actions.  

How you can help Legislatively?          

By working together with FISP and other agencies we will achieve our common goal together.  Call or write your legislators. Ask them to continue funding Suicide Prevention and Mental Health initiatives in Florida.  Go to the FSPC website http://www.floridasuicideprevention.org/ or the state website myflorida.com to find your legislators.           

Contact us to for more information.                                      back to top                       

Survivor’s Notes: This section will expand for those loved ones who have survived a suicide, and for those who have attempted suicide, to recount their stories. By telling your stories, you will be able to help those who have experienced the trauma and can benefit to know that they are not alone. For those contemplating suicide, your stories may give them the second option they need to reach out for help. And for others, it may just alert them to the warning signs of those around them. feel free to contact the editor to submit your stories at fisp@earthlink.net  -  (954) 384-7988 (fax).                   

                                                                                       back to top