University Of Kentucky Offering Suicide Prevention Training Sessions Via Zoom

From the University of Kentucky:

February 5, 2021

By Aviva Cantor

Positive mental health is an integral part of employee well-being. Along with maintaining awareness of our own mental health, it’s important to stay alert to warning signs when others may need intervention. By learning the QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) technique, University of Kentucky employees can make a difference by gaining the tools to help identify suicide warning signs.

On Friday, Feb. 19, UK Human Resources Work+Life Connections will host a QPR Suicide Prevention Training session from 10-11:30 a.m. on Zoom. Mental health therapist Ann Bassoni will help attendees learn about how they can listen to others, apply QPR and plant seeds of hope. Interested attendees can register here.

The QPR Institute was created with the goal to save lives and reduce suicidal behaviors by providing innovative, practical and proven suicide prevention training.

“This one class will offer an individual the necessary tools to help save a life,” Bassoni said. “There is a false idea that asking someone if they are suicidal or thinking of killing themselves will give the person the idea to do so. In fact, many people contemplating suicide will be relieved and really do want help. As the QPR program describes, there are three simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide.”

For those who are unable to attend the Feb. 19 QPR session, Work+Life Connections recommends registering for other QPR sessions through two additional campus organizations.

The UK Counseling Center will offer QPR training sessions for students, faculty and staff on the following dates:

• Wednesday, Feb. 10, noon-1 p.m.
• Wednesday, Feb. 24, 4-5 p.m.
• Tuesday, March 11, noon-1 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 24, 4-5 p.m.
• Thursday, April 8, noon-1 p.m.
• Tuesday, April 20. 4-5 p.m.

Sign-up information can be found on the Counseling Center website.

The College of Public Health will offer three QPR training sessions that will be presented by Adam Trosper (Kentucky Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities) and Larry McNabb (Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation - Blind Services, formerly the Kentucky Office for the Blind). These sessions will be offered on the following dates:

• Thursday, Feb. 25, 1-3 p.m. Register here.
• Tuesday, March 11, 9:30-11:30 a.m. Register here.
• Tuesday, March 30, 1-3 p.m. Register here.

To discover more mental health resources for UK employees, please visit the Work+Life Connections page. For more information on upcoming events by UK Work-Life, please visit the Work-Life calendar or reach out to worklife@uky.edu.

This press release was produced by the University of Kentucky. The views expressed here are the author’s own.