October 31, 2005
DPHHS Gets Grant to Prevent Youth Suicide
The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) has received a $400,000 federal grant to support suicide prevention efforts in the state over the next year, officials announced Monday.
The grant is aimed specifically at trying to lower the rate of suicide among young people.
"Suicide is the second leading cause of preventable death among youth and young adults in Montana (after accidents)," according to Deborah Henderson, head of the Child, Adolescent and Community Health Section of DPHHS. She noted that 132 Montanans aged 10-24 took their own lives between 1999 and 2003, the latest year for which statistics are available.
"In a state this size, that's a lot of grief and lost potential," she said. "It's a terrible loss to all of us in one way or another. This grant will help reinvigorate our efforts to save children and families from a tragedy that can be prevented."
Henderson said the state will use the grant to:
- Support as many as eight community projects and one project by an institution of higher learning aimed at preventing youth suicide;
- Organize a statewide suicide prevention task force that can continue ongoing work on a statewide suicide prevention plan; and
- Conduct public awareness and education campaign focusing on youth suicide prevention.
The grant was one of 14 awarded to states by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The grants were made possible as a result of the passage last year of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act for youth suicide prevention.
Montana has the potential to get up to $400,000 a year for five years, depending on funding availability, Henderson said.
Page last updated: 06/15/2006
