In a death-defying society, suicide tends to be one of those unmentionables that most of us steer around. But as Missouri’s 10th leading cause of death and at a rate of almost 82 every day nationwide, it pays to understand the nature of suicide and know how to respond if a loved one is contemplating taking his or her own life.
On February 18 from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., the Linn County Health Department will be offering, free of charge to anyone who wants to take advantage of the opportunity, a brief course in suicide prevention.
Called QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer), the training will provide three simple steps that anyone can learn to save a life from suicide.
According to the Health Dept., “People trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of suicide crisis and how to question, persuade and refer someone to help.”
The press release from the Health Dept. elaborates, “Just like CPR, QPR is the most widely taught gatekeeper training program in the United States. A gatekeeper is someone in a position to recognize a crisis and the warning signs that soemone may be contemplating suicide. Gatekeepers include parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, ministers, doctors, nurses, foremen, police officers, caseworkers and many others who are strategically positioned to recognize and refer someone at risk of suicide. A trained QPR Gatekeeper will learn to: recognize the warning signs of suicide, know how to offer help for the person and possible save a life.”
- See today's LCL for the full story
