Nearly 100 lives were lost to suicide across Butler, Dunklin, Pemiscot and Wayne counties between 2019 and 2023. Missouri, as a state, has one of the highest suicide rates in the nation, ranking 15th.
FCC Behavioral Health is on a mission to help change this and will host a suicide prevention event from 2-4 p.m. Feb. 26 at the Poplar Bluff library main branch. The event is free and open to the public
Kate Brinkley, FCC’s suicide prevention specialist, has made it her mission to educate as many people as she can.
“This training will help to broach the conversations regarding mental health,” Brinkley said.
The event will focus on two main areas, “Conversations for Suicide Safer Homes” and QPR, “Question, Persuade, Refer.”
QPR is a baseline training on how to have a conversation with someone with suicidal ideation and who may be having a hard time.
After participants have learned about QPR, they will then be taught about Conversations for Suicide Safer Homes. This is a conversation surrounding lethal means safety for those who own firearms. This lesson discusses how to keep a home safe when someone is struggling.
Brinkley added, “We are currently building a map across the state that details locations where someone can store their firearms until they get through the hard times and feel safe.”
Some 66% of all suicides involve firearms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Firearms are the most lethal means of suicide, health officials report.
In just over the last three years, 877 people have been trained through QPR, 541 people through Conversations for Suicide Safer Homes, and 103 people through Adult Mental Health First Aid, which equips individuals with the skills to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health challenges.
In 2023, FCC partnered with the Missouri Institute for Mental Health and six other organizations to begin planning and researching ways to tackle the suicide issue throughout Missouri. This came after getting access to the Firearms Suicide Prevention Learning Grant of $2.3 million.
MIMH focuses its attention on data research, while FCC can equip community leaders with training, education, and awareness to help tackle the suicide issue.
“The grant was funded by the Missouri Foundation for Health, which put out the request to organizations in 2020,” Brinkley said.
She added, “MIMH applied for the grant and brought in FCC to complete the groundwork due to our service locations in rural Southeast Missouri, where some of the higher-risk industries are present.”