November 2021 Call to Action

The monthly newsletter of the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network

Hello friends! We at TSPN wish you all the happiest of holiday seasons. We hope this time of year brings you rest and comfort; however, we recognize that the holidays may be hard for some folks, so we have included several holiday mental health reminders & resources in this edition of the newsletter.

We are so appreciative of your commitment to suicide prevention throughout 2021, and we look forward to connecting with everyone in meaningful ways in 2022.

-Misty

In this issue

International Suicide Memorial Wall promo video

QPR & ASIST trainer summit announcement

Holiday mental health resources

and more!

Many of our staff members participated in Veterans Day 2021 programming across the state last month. TSPN is proud to participate in several groups and initiatives concerning Veteran and military suicide prevention year-round. Visit tspn.org/resources/smvf to learn more.

In the Northwest Region, TSPN partnered with the Arts Council of Crockett Tennessee for their grand opening of the newly restored Bells Theater in Crockett County. The grand opening took place on Sunday, November 7, and featured a concert by the 129th Army Band stationed out of Nashville as an early celebration of Veterans Day. Northwest Regional Director Emily Oswald tabled at the event with resources and materials focusing on Veteran suicide prevention and mental health.

Justin Johnson, TSPN Regional Director for Memphis/Shelby County and Post Commander of Collierville Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5066, was invited to attend the Shelby County Veterans Day luncheon to highlight and show appreciation to the 50,000 veterans in Shelby County and the different veteran organizations that serve them.

TSPN recently developed a promotional video highlighting the International Suicide Memorial Wall ahead of Survivors of Suicide Loss Day 2021, held November 20. The short video gives a glimpse of the new and updated Wall installation at our offices and explains how to go about scheduling a visit to the Wall.

Check it out!

TSPN is planning an in-person Trainer Summit for the spring of 2022 for current QPR and ASIST trainers. This summit will likely be held in April somewhere in Middle Tennessee.

As of now, we are considering a full-day event for QPR instructors, followed by a half-day for ASIST instructors, so instructors who teach both can attend all sessions.

We'd love your input on how to best schedule this event!

If you are a current QPR or ASIST trainer in our network, please fill out the survey below by January 14:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/D3YLNYN

You can send any comments or questions about the survey or the summit itself to Executive Assistant Vladimir Enlow at venlow@tspn.org. We will send out more information statewide in the new year when details are finalized.

Thank you all for your partnership with us!

TSPN's Northeast Region is looking for a volunteer to facilitate a Survivors of Suicide Loss group for teenagers in 2022.

The ideal volunteer would have experience with Zoom and be interested in assisting our Northeast Regional Director Kayla Sharpe with creative outreach to young people about the group.

If interested, email Kayla at ksharpe@tspn.org.

Nationwide lived experience survey opportunity

The University of Pennsylvania Center for the Prevention of Suicide is recruiting participants to take part in an online research study regarding the perceptions of and experiences with mental health treatment of those with a history of suicidal thoughts. The goal of the study is to inform future research to improve the acceptability and accessibility of treatment for suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The study is completely online and can be completed in under 30 minutes.

To learn more, please click here to read through the informed consent form. If you consent to participate, you will be directed to eligibility questions and then to the survey if you are eligible for the study.

Click here to complete the survey

Completion of the survey will result in your optional entry into a gift card raffle to win one of forty $20 gift cards to be delivered via email.

Please feel free to reach out to the research team by email with any questions: Joshua Steinberg at jssteinb@sas.upenn.edu or Dr. Kelly L. Green at kelgreen@pennmedicine.upenn.ed u.