Honouring Life Network:

New Media in Suicide Prevention

Overview

• NAHO • ABORIGINAL YOUTH SUICIDE - FACTS & FIGURES • NAHO’S RESPONSE - HLN • ROLE OF NEW MEDIA & SOCIAL NETWORKING IN SUICIDE PREVENTION • STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES • FUTURE OUTLOOK

National Aboriginal Health Organization (NAHO)

• NAHO is an Aboriginal-designed and –controlled body committed to influencing and advancing the health and well-being of Aboriginal Peoples by carrying out knowledge-based strategies.

• Incorporated in 2000, NAHO is a unique not-for-profit organization founded upon, and committed to, unity, while respecting diversity. • With First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities as our primary focus, NAHO gathers, creates, interprets, disseminates, and uses both traditional Aboriginal and contemporary western healing and wellness approaches.

NAHO’s Objectives

1. To improve and promote Aboriginal health through knowledge-based activities.

2. To promote an understanding of the health issues affecting Aboriginal Peoples.

3. To facilitate research on Aboriginal health and develop research partnerships.

4. To foster the participation of Aboriginal Peoples in the delivery of health care.

5. To affirm and protect Aboriginal traditional healing practices.

Current Programs

• NATIONAL ABORIGINAL ROLE MODEL PROGRAM • ABORIGINAL CHILDREN’S CIRCLE OF EARLY LEARNING • HEALTHY LIVING WEB SITE • FNC- YOUTH KNOWLEDGE NEEDS ASSESSMENT

•

Aboriginal Youth Suicide

SUICIDE IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH FOR F.N AND INUIT YOUTH.

•

ACCOUNTS FOR MORE THAN 1/3 OF ALL DEATHS.

•

SUICIDE 3-11 TIMES



FOR F.N., INUIT AND MÉTIS YOUTH.

•

INUIT YOUTH: 11 TIMES



THE NATIONAL AVERAGE IS AMONGST THE HIGHEST IN THE WORLD.

Stats

• •

F.N. MALES BETWEEN 15-24 YEARS OLD ARE SEVEN TIMES



TO TAKE THEIR OWN LIVES USING HIGHLY LETHAL METHODS OF SUICIDE.

METHODS OF REPORTING SUICIDE IN REMOTE AND RURAL COMMUNITIES.

–

IS THERE A NEED TO RECONSIDER HOW THIS DATA IS BEING REPORTED?

Stats con’t

• LIMITED RESEARCH ON MENTAL HEALTH STATISTICS AMONG F.N., INUIT AND MÉTIS POPULATIONS.

• THERE IS CURRENTLY

NO DATA

ON THE RATE OF SUICIDE FOR MÉTIS YOUTH.

•

Response: Honouring Life Network

LAUNCHED IN APRIL 2008.

•

WEB SITE ADDRESSING CRISIS NUMBER OF SUICIDES OCCURRING IN SOME F.N., INUIT AND MÉTIS COMMUNITIES IN CANADA.

•

PRIMARY FOCUS: TO PROVIDE RESOURCES AND CREATE NETWORKS TO



RESILIENCY IN ORDER TO



SUICIDAL BEHAVIOUR.

•

AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE IN THE U.S. AND THE F.N. AND INUIT HEALTH BRANCH OF HEALTH CANADA.

Honouring Life Network

• FUNDING – NAYSPS • TRILINGUAL – ENGLISH, FRENCH & INUKTITUT • HLN YOUTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE – PERSONAL/PROFESSIONAL INVOLVEMENT

Components:

1. REFERRAL PAGE FOR AT-RISK YOUTH 2. YOUTH CORNER 3. RESOURCE CENTRE – – – OVER 200 RESOURCES FREQUENTLY UPDATED QUALITY ASSURANCE 4. YOUTH WORKERS FORUM

Peer-to-Peer Communication

•

PREFER PEER SUPPORT OVER ADULTS.

•

SUPPORTS AWARENESS RAISING, SELF REFLECTION, INSPIRATION, AND LEARNING.

•

PEER HELPING HAS BEEN RECOMMENDED BY CASP AND THE U.S. CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL .

What is new/social media?

• KEY PLATFORMS: – SOCIAL NETWORKING – VIDEO SHARING – BLOGS – CHAT ROOMS – WIDGETS – RRS – PHOTO SHARING • EXAMPLES:

Did you know...?

• IN 2008: – 49% OF CONSUMERS USE SOCIAL MEDIA AT LEAST ONCE A DAY.

– 76 MILLION VISITED MYSPACE – 54.5 MILLION VISITED FACEBOOK.

– 23.7 MILLION VISITED YOUTUBE.

– OVER 50 BILLION PICTURES ON FLICKR.

– B/T 5-10 THOUSAND NEW TWITTER ACCOUNTS BEING CREATED DAILY.

Source: Slideshare.

Social Media for non profits

. 2009. http://www.slideshare.net/PrimalMedia/ social-media-non-profits

Who has access?

Con’t...

Strengths

•

HOW IS NEW MEDIA WORKING?

– SOCIAL NETWORKING • FACEBOOK (THE HONOURING LIFE NETWORK) • TWITTER (HONOURINGLIFE) • BLOGS (HLN NEWS, BLOGGER.COM) – PERSONAL STORIES – FEATURED RESOURCES – INTERACTIVE TOOLS – CONTESTS

Strengths

• ACCESSIBLE TO MANY • CONFIDENTIALITY & DISCRETION • QUANTIFIABLE • INEXPENSIVE • EMPOWERMENT • LITERACY RATES

Challenges

• REGULATION • CREDIBILITY OF INFORMATION • LEARNING CURVE • TECHNOLOGY • ARE YOUTH RECEIVING PROFESSIONAL HELP?

• FOLLOW-UP

Challenges of HLN

• • • • •

NEW PROGRAM WHO ARE WE MISSING?

RESEARCH IN NON-ABORIGINAL YOUTH SHOWS THEY ARE RECEPTIVE TO PREVENTION MATERIALS BUT LIMITED KNOWLEDGE/RESEARCH CULTURAL DIFFERENCES & NEEDS GAPS IN INFORMATION & RESOURCES

Developments in Prevention

ADDRESSING AND PREVENTING YOUTH SUICIDE SINCE LAUNCH OF NAYSPS AND THE HLN HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL.

• • •

EXAMPLES;



SUICIDE PREVENTION PROGRAMS IMPLEMENTED AT COMMUNITY LEVEL BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS PROMISING PRACTICES &STRATEGIES INTERNET AND NEW MEDIA TO DELIVER INFO/RESOURCES

• • .

W O R K E X P E R I E N C E

N A T I O N A L A B O R I G I N A L H E A L T H O R G A N I Z A T I O N , O t t a w a , O N

P r o g r a m C o o r d i n a t o r 2 0 0 8 -

Responsible for

P r e s e n t EVALUATION REVEALED:

d e si g n i n g , m a n a g i n g a n d d e li v e ri n g a W e b b a s e d s u ic

Evaluation

r e v e n ti o n st r a t e g y f o r Fi r st N a ti o n s, I n u it a n d M é ti s y o u t h .

– – – Coordinate community vi si ts a n d p r

INCREASED PARTNERSHIPS AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL.

e n t a ti o n s t

IMPLEMENTATION OF PROGRAMS BY COMMUNITY LEVEL.

a ri o u s t a r g

INCREASED ENGAGEMENT IN SUICIDE PREVENTION

a u d i e n c

INITIATIVES FOR YOUTH, BY YOUTH.

a n d c o n s u m e r s.

Developed and i m p l e m e n t

HOW CAN YOU INCORPORATE NEW/SOCIAL MEDIA

c o m p r e h e n

WITH YOUR WORK IN SUICIDE PREVENTION?

e c o m m u n ic a ti o n s st r a t e g y a n d m a r k e ti n g c a m p a i

New media is here to stay!

•

HOW CAN YOU INCORPORATE NEW/SOCIAL MEDIA WITH YOUR WORK IN SUICIDE PREVENTION AND MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION?

• • • • •

Sources

Chandler, M.J. & Lalonde, C. (1998). Cultural continuity as a hedge against suicide in Canada’s First Nations.

Transcultural Psychiatry,

35(2), 191-219 Cooper, M., Karlsberg, M. & Pelletier, A.M. (1992).

Aboriginal suicide in British Columbia: An overview

. Canada’s Mental Health, 40(3), 19-23 Jodoin, N., & White, J. (2004).

Aboriginal Youth: A Manual of Promising Suicide Prevention Strategies.

Calgary, Alberta

:

Centre for Suicide Prevention.

Kirmayer, L.J., et al. (1993).

Suicide in Canadian Aboriginal populations: Emerging trends in research and intervention

(Report 1). Montreal, Quebec: Culture & Mental Health Research Unit, Sir Mortimer B. Davis- Jewish General Hospital.

Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1995).

Choosing life: Special report on suicide among Aboriginal people

. Ottawa, Ontario: Communications Group

For more information contact:

NAHO/ONSA 220 Laurier Avenue West, Suite 1200 Ottawa, ON K1P 5Z9 1-877-602-4445 (toll free) (613) 237-9462 [email protected]

www.naho.ca

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