Suicide Prevention Awareness Can Keep Families Whole

September 21, 2007, Suicide remains a tragic and preventable problem among our nation’s youth. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that youth suicide has increased dramatically for the first time in nearly a decade. By learning to recognize the signs of suicide, we can work to prevent these tragedies.

Suicide now accounts for 13 percent of deaths for Americans between the ages of 15 and 24. Among high school students, 17 percent have seriously considered suicide and 8 percent of students have actually attempted it.

Because September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month in Tennessee, the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network has been holding memorial and awareness events across the state.

About 750 people commit suicide every year in Tennessee. It is the third leading cause of death for Tennesseans between the ages of 15 and 24.

For the friends and families left behind after a loved one commits suicide, life will never be the same. Clark Flatt of Hendersonville saw his life change when his 16-year-old son committed suicide. That tragedy led Clark to create the Jason Foundation, one of the nation’s leading suicide awareness and prevention programs.

Clark’s experience motivated me to introduce the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act to get communities the resources they need to fight teen suicide. The bipartisan bill, named after the late son of U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon, works to combat the startling trends in youth suicide through grants for states and universities to implement youth suicide prevention programs.

After the bill was signed into law in 2004, Tennessee Lives Count received funding from the bill to offer training sessions to promote awareness of youth suicide. In its first year, TLC provided training to 500 individuals and displayed suicide awareness exhibits at 18 different venues.

Congress now has an opportunity to help to prevent suicide and invest in American families by reauthorizing the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act so that troubled teens can get the help they need. Garrett Smith and Jason Flatt have shown us the need is there.

For more information on the Jason Foundation, contact 1-888-881-2323 or visit www.jasonfoundation.com. For information on the Tennessee Lives Count project, contact the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network at (615) 291-1077 or visit www.tspn.org.