Florida Department of Corrections Educational Campaign
The Florida Department of Corrections (DOC) approached the Statewide Office of Suicide Prevention to hold an educational campaign for their employees, both the state-level and direct care staff. It was determined that our approach would cover training, awareness, and educational materials.
Dr. Dean Aufderheide has been trained in the Suicide Prevention Resource Center’s (SPRC) Assessing and Managing Suicide Risk training. Dr. Aufderheide blanketed the state, training all DOC direct care staff. Additionally, over 26,000 educational brochures, wallet cards, and posters were graciously provided by the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for DOC employees statewide free of cost.
Throughout the 2008 calendar year, the Statewide Office of Suicide Prevention provided a monthly suicide prevention segment to be featured in the Department of Corrections Compass, a weekly electronic newsletter. This campaign ended in December 2008 but each month's featured segment is available below.
January – The Silent Epidemic
February – Myths and Misperceptions; Uncovering the Truth about Suicide
March - Suicide and Substance Abuse; an Important Risk Factor
April – Suicide and Mental Illness
May – The Dynamics of Domestic Violence and the Co-Occurrence with Mental Illness and Suicide
June – Surviving Suicide – Transforming Grief into Hope
July – Stop Adult Suicide
August – Suicide Among the Incarcerated
September – Law Enforcement; Helping Those Who Help Others
October – Suicide: A Preventable Public Health Threat
November – The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
December – Helping Someone in Suicidal Crisis