This page is meant to be a tool for all kinds of professional, lived experience, and grassroots communities to find trainings that build knowledge and skills around suicide prevention. Click on the titles to expand and learn more about learning objectives, target audience, format and how to access. It is impossible to list ALL of the suicide prevention trainings that exist, so this list is primarily recommendations from the Prevent Suicide Wisconsin coalition. For more suicide prevention trainings and interventions, see the Suicide Prevention Resource Center's (SPRC) Best Practices Registry.
The Alternatives to Suicide approach is about openly exploring the meaning behind thoughts and feelings of suicide, as well as what might be worth living for. Click here to read more about the Alt2Su framework that is explored in this training.
Best Suited for this Audience:
Healthcare or mental healthcare providers; public health; social workers; peer supporters; clergy; people with lived experience; people who are interested in supporting their friends and family
Builds These Skills:
Exploring the myths around suicide; engage in paradigm shifts driven by evidence and root causes of suicide; apply the four elements of the Alternatives to Suicide approach (Validation-Curiosity-Vulnerability-Community); identify at least 3 different ways to create policy or advocate for systems-level change to better address suicidal crisis
Format:
In-person or online
Length of Time:
2 days (8 hours each)
Cost:
Exact cost depends on trainers' time and other travel, lodging, and/or coordination needs. Online trainings tend to be cheaper. Reach out to Wildflower Alliance for a more exact quote
How to Request a Training:
https://wildfloweralliance.org/request/
The Alternatives to Suicide approach is about openly exploring the meaning behind thoughts and feelings of suicide, as well as what might be worth living for. Click here to read more about the Alt2Su approach that this training centers on.
Individuals who have their own lived experience with suicidal thoughts, feelings, and/or actions and are interested in becoming a peer support group facilitator.
Peer support skills using the four elements of the Alternatives to Suicide approach (Validation-Curiosity-Vulnerability-Community); understanding of the research that supports the development of Alternatives to Suicide groups; introducing and facilitating Alt2Su groups; strategies to advertise, fund, and gain community buy-in for Alt2Su groups
3 days (8 hours each)
The Be Sensitive, Be Brave (BSBB) trainings infuse culture and diversity throughout foundational workshops on suicide prevention and mental health. Community members learn to act as eyes and ears for mental health and suicidal distress, and to connect individuals to help or support.
Community members, friends, family members, peers. Suitable for high school ages and up.
Participants will learn how to recognize mental health conditions, what to do when someone needs support, and tools for maintaining good mental health and preventing mental health conditions. Diversity considerations are addressed throughout the workshop as we discuss how mental health challenges may look different across cultures.
2 hours
$24.95 for individual, self-paced online course. Costs for group trainings vary, please reach out below to inquire.
https://communityconnections.net/training/bsbb/livetrainings/
Designed to create dialogue around being an adult ally for LGBTQ youth.
Learn various terminology related to LGBTQ communities, explain the unique challenges facing LGBTQ people, identify ways to create safer and more supportive environments for LGBTQ people and discuss the services offered by The Trevor Project.
Online or in-person offered
Approximately 2 hours
$1,500 but can be rather flexible for non-profits, government agencies, and schools.
education@thetrevorproject.org
For anyone 16 years or older, participants 16-17 years old will require parental consent
This workshop teaches the Pathways to Assisting Life Model and how to navigate the conversation about suicide from asking the question, to providing direct questions and helping the person with thoughts find their connection to life.
In-person
2 consecutive days
$250 with a $50 deposit required at registration
https://legacy.livingworks.net/training-and-trainers/find-a-training-workshop/?sort=date&type=20
Best Suited For This Audience: Healthcare professionals (non-clinical staff working in inpatient care settings)
Builds These Skills: AMSR-Direct Care Training is designed to familiarize you with the AMSR approach and the risk formulation, giving you the understanding and skills to assist in the treatment of those at risk for suicide. You'll learn how you can help identify and support individuals with suicide risk by using the suicide risk identification, assessment, and management competencies taught in the AMSR-Direct Care Inpatient training. You'll receive an AMSR manual, so you can take with you the information, background, and tips that are covered in the session.
Format: This workshop is taught live in person by an authorized AMSR trainer. The workshop consists of 3.5 hours of content that includes discussion, role-playing, and video segments.
Length of Time: Half-day
Cost: $50
How To Request a Training:
Email: amsr@edc.org
More information
Health and behavioral healthcare professionals working in inpatient care settings
This training is designed to improve skills for recognition, assessment, and management of suicide risk. It helps you learn about effective suicide-specific interventions and ways to develop collaborative treatment and safety plans for individuals at risk of suicide. You will be provided with an AMSR manual, so you can take with you the information, background, and tips that are covered in the training session.
Online, 6.5 hours of content that includes discussion, role-playing, and video segments
Full day
$145 for online training with an extra $25 manual shipping cost
https://psychwire.com/zsi/zsi-amsr-inpatients
Best suited for this audience:
Health and behavioral healthcare professionals working in outpatient care settings
Builds these skills:
How to Request a training:
https://solutions.edc.org/solutions/zero-suicide-institute/events?field_event_type_target_id%5B44%5D=44&field_initiative_target_id%5B52%5D=52
Health and behavioral healthcare professionals working in substance use disorder treatment settings
This training is designed to improve skills for recognition, assessment, and management of suicide risk. It helps you learn about effective suicide-specific interventions and ways to develop collaborative treatment and safety plans for individuals at risk of suicide.
K-12 school staff and educators, healthcare professionals, higher education staff, adults working in the foster care system, faith baith leaders and more.
Describe how to respond to a youth who is at risk for suicide and connect them to the proper resources; explain how to create supportive environments for all youth that promote resiliency and decrease the risk for suicide; describe the services offered by The Trevor Project and how youth can access them.
https://www.thetrevorproject.org/care-training/, also: education@thetrevorproject.org
Mental health providers, social workers, school counselors and administrators, and emergency or crisis responders
This training is a framework for suicide assessment and treatment for patients in a wide range of treatment settings. It’s a collaborative intervention between clinician and patient, that helps clinicians treat the two drivers of the patient’s suicidal ideations. It is a proven clinical intervention to treat suicidal drivers to help reduce suicidal ideals, overall symptoms, depression, and hopelessness.
3-hour video course ($99), CAMS book ($35-40) based on the latest research and clinical trials for suicide prevention and treatment, online role-play training ($200) provides an opportunity to practice using the CAMS framework with other individuals, and CAMS consultation calls ($15) 4-1 hour Zoom calls to get expert guidance from clinicians on complex cases
10 hours of coursework and 4 hours of coaching calls
Total $394
https://cams-care.com/about-us/contact-us/
This training is for professionals and community members and staff can customize trainings to meet the needs of each community or organization and incorporate local cultural issues.
Connect uses a public health, holistic, approach to prevent suicide across the lifespan, offering a community planning component, and incorporates elements of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy. This training can include prevention/intervention, postvention, and survivor voices.
Online and hybrid trainings are available
6 hours
NA
https://theconnectprogram.org/about-us/contact-us/
Healthcare and Social Service providers.
CALM is designed to reduce access to the methods people use to kill themselves. It covers who needs lethal means counseling and how to work with people at risk for suicide—and their families—to reduce access.
Can be delivered virtually or in person.
2 days (9am-2pm)
Free
https://zerosuicidetraining.edc.org/enrol/index.php?id=20
Holding Space is a presentation to discuss suicide as a public health issue, explore common myths and perceptions about suicide, and build skills for having supportive conversations about thoughts of suicide and other hard feelings.
Community members, friends, family, peers.
Participants learn about the VCVC (Validation, Curiosity, Vulnerability, Community) framework to navigate conversations about suicide, including asking someone if they are thinking of suicide and what support they need. This framework originates from the Wildflower Alliance and adapted for this presentation through collaboration with Mental Health America of Wisconsin.
Online or in-person
Varies, please inquire about your needs and audience.
Email Leah Rolando (lrolando@safecommunities.org) or Erica Steib (erica@mhawisconsin.org).
This training is mainly for elementary, middle, and high schools but they also have programs available for higher education institutions, Veterans Affairs facilities, and businesses.
This program is a school-based peer support team with students selecting peers they feel are trustworthy to join the Hope Squad. Those squad members are trained to identify warning signs, provide friendship to struggling students, and seek help from adults when appropriate. Students are not trained to be counselors but provide a trusted peer to listen to at-risk students and inform an adult if they need help.
https://hopesquad.com/get-started/
Those who do or have struggled with mental health and substances, friends and family, other supporters or those wanting to learn DBT Skills are welcome to take the course.
This class offers simple ways to manage loneliness, stress, relationships and mental health and substance-use struggles (including suicidal thoughts). Micro-interventions (including coping tools called DBT Skills) are small steps you can do in 5 minutes or less to improve your health or support others.
Online, self-paced
https://nowmattersnow.org/
High school students, parents, teachers, and school personnel
This program consists of two videos “Preventing Teen Suicide”, which is intended for teachers and school personnel on the warning signs of suicide and steps that can be taken to help students, and “Teen Depression, which is intended for teens, parents, and school personnel teaching about depression and encourages those that are suffering to seek help.
75-120 minutes
$59.95
https://afsp.org/more-than-sad/
General audience
The three main components of this gatekeeper training are recognizing the warning signs of suicide, learning how to offer help, and learning how to refer someone to the appropriate help.
1 hour
Depends on the trainer
If you are interested in locating a QPR Instructor in your area please visit the QPR website to and click In Person Training-Find an Instructor.
Best Suited for This Audience:
Living Works safeTALK is a four-hour face-to-face workshop featuring powerful presentations, audiovisuals, and skills practice. This course discusses why people miss, dismiss, and avoid the conversation about suicide. safeTALK teaches Tell – Ask – Listen and Keep Safe for now. Training is for anyone 15 years old and older
At a Living Works safeTALK workshop, you'll learn how to prevent suicide by recognizing signs, engaging someone, and connecting them to an intervention resource for further support.
In-person, A skilled, supportive trainer will guide you through the course, and a community resource will be on hand to support your safety and comfort.
4 hours
Wisconsin based trainings are being offered through The Friendship Circle. Please fill email Levi Stein at info@fcwi.org and fill out a training request form HERE
Students, teachers, school staff
This training provides information on data of youth suicide in Wisconsin, suicide risk factors, warning signs, methods for dealing with suicidal students. One method taught is ACT which stands for Acknowledge the signs of suicide, Care and Concern for the individual, and Tell someone who can provide the appropriate intervention for the individual.
Online
20 minutes
https://dpi.wi.gov/sspw/mental-health/youth-suicide-prevention/training
For anyone 15 years or older, or 13-14-year-olds, with parental or caregiver guidance
Learn to read the signs of suicide, begin the conversation, and connect someone to further help and support through a four-step model.
90 minutes
$39.95 per enrollment
start@livingworks.net
Elementary, Middle, or High school personnel
Sources of Strength utilizes an upstream approach using student peer leaders to help enhance protective factors associated with reducing suicide across a school population. Along with preventing suicide this training also aims to prevent violence, bullying, and substance misuse.
Primarily in-person but online options are available for elementary schools (K4-6th grade). Trainers are flexible to fit each individual school's needs
2 full days, 16 hours
Pricing varies starting at $750 (https://sourcesofstrength.org/pricing/), trainers will work with schools on pricing
Katrina Johnson: kjohnsontherapyinfo@gmail.com and Jada Walker: jada@sourcesofstrength.org
General public such as businesses, primary care providers, law enforcement, social service workers, healthcare workers, and parents
This training focuses on the history of Sources of Strength, the model of the program, and highlights some examples of how Sources of Strength has been successfully implemented.
In person
90-120 minutes
Regional trainers can help assist with cost
SP201 teaches clinicians to assess & manage suicide risk based on the latest empirical research about culture, diversity, and suicide prevention.
Clinicians, crisis response providers, school counselors, and other providers
7 hours
$190 for self-paced, online course. Reach out through website below to request a quote for a group training either in-person or online.
Six(6) continuing education units are provided by CCPA, who is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education.
https://communityconnections.net/training/sp201/
Suicide is personal, but it is also a public health issue that affects workplaces, communities, and families. By improving an employee’s understanding of mental health and suicide prevention, they can be a key partner in the effort to prevent suicides by recognizing and connecting with individuals at risk for and displaying suicide warning signs.
The VitalCog in the Workplace program trains employees at all levels of an organization to appreciate the critical need for suicide prevention while creating an opportunity for open conversations and resources in the workplace. Our vision is to cultivate a workplace community of employees who aspire to eliminate the devastating impact of suicide.
Adults in workplace settings, construction, athletic staff, and for student athletes.
To inquire about cost please contact Alex Yannacone at Alexandra.yannacone@cuanschutz.edu.
To schedule, please contact Alex Yannacone at Alexandra.yannacone@cuanschutz.edu..
When Conversation Turns to Suicide is a 16-hour training based in the Alternatives to Suicide approach, and intended as an alternative to ASIST, QPR, and similar approaches that remain rooted in conventional medicalized systems.
Clinical providers, family members, peer supports, first responders, and anyone else who wants to learn how to offer support to someone who is suicidal.
Myths around suicide; VCVC (Validation-Curiosity-Vulnerability-Community) framework for being in conversation with someone who is struggling; links between trauma (including systemic oppression) and suicide; strategies for advocating for systems change
16 hours (4 days, 4 hours each)
Healthcare and Behavioral Healthcare Systems
Embedding evidence-based elements as a bundle of interventions focused on reducing suicide; Collecting data to measure both outcomes as well as fidelity to use of these interventions; Conducting continuous quality improvement to educate staff and improve performance weaknesses; Normalizing suicide prevention and care practices for staff, people at risk, and their families as the expected standard of care.
2 days (9am-2pm both days)
$250 per team (Includes CEH's)
https://www.preventsuicidewi.org/zero-suicide