Columbia Nonprofit Launches Suicide Prevention App with State Health Department

Grassroots has teamed up with the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) to develop the first suicide assessment app in the country. The ubiquity of smart phones has made the app an easy-to-access technology in the effort to combat a rise in deaths by suicide.

Seth Knobel, Grassroots Director of Crisis Intervention Services, recently helped introduce the app at DHMH Headquarters along with technology partner NextLogik. The app, Knobel noted, allows a self-assessment by the user and provides “fast and easy access to save your own or someone else’s life.”

According to Brandon Johnson, DHMH’s Director of Suicide and Violence Prevention, suicide deaths in Maryland have risen to nearly 600 annually. Last year the Grassroots crisis hotline handled over 37,000 calls from individuals in distress, some of whom threatened to harm themselves.

Howard County Council Chairman Calvin Ball, who attended the launch at DHMH, noted that “any time a life is lost, we can do better.”

The suicide prevention small phone app is called “There is Hope” and is targeted to someone struggling with taking his own life or for those concerned about suicidal thoughts in others. In addition to valuable information about warning signs, risk factors and tips on how to talk to someone who is suicidal, features include an immediate connection to crisis counselors at Grassroots who will deliver help and hope for preventing suicide.

The app is free for download on iTunes and Google Play.

“There is Hope” was created with funds from the Maryland Suicide Prevention and Early Intervention Network (MD-SPIN) Grant in Partnership with the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

Grassroots operates Howard County’s only emergency shelter for homeless men, women and families and the Grassroots Day Resource Center. In addition, the nonprofit operates a 24-hour crisis intervention service, staffed by professional crisis counselors who field calls to its 24-hour hotline and see walk-in clients in need of immediate counseling. As part of its crisis intervention services, Grassroots operates the county’s Mobile Crisis Team, which responds to family emergencies.

Grassroots is located on Freetown Road in Columbia. For information, call 410-531-6006, or visit www.grassrootscrisis.org.

Attending the recent launch of the “There is Hope” suicide prevention app were (from l.) Behavioral Health Administration Executive Director Dr. Barbara J. Bazron , Director of Suicide and Violence Prevention Brandon J. Johnson and Deputy Director of Child and Adolescent Services Dr. Al Zachik, Grassroots Board Chair Mary Lasky and Executive Director Andrea Ingram, Howard County Council Chair Calvin Ball and Seth Knobel, Director of Crisis Intervention Services for Grassroots.