The Habif Health and Wellness Center will promote conversations about suicide and mental health with a newly available training program, QPR.
QPR is a nationwide training course that emphasizes three key steps in “recognizing and responding to signs of suicidal thinking or behavior,” according to The Source, which are “question, persuade, and refer.” The program takes 45 minutes to complete and can be accessed online or in person.
Dr. Gonzalez, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, and Dr. Dougher, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Support and Well-being, were aware of the growing prevalence of suicide and suicidal ideations on college campuses before implementing QPR at WashU.
“[Suicide] is the second highest [cause of] death for college-aged students,” Gonzalez said. “It’s not just WashU…it is a national epidemic.”
“[Suicidal thoughts] are very common in ways that folks are generally less comfortable talking about,” Dougher said.
The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the mental health crisis for college students. Even as COVID cases slowed down and restrictions rolled back, students continued to suffer from depression and other mental illnesses at high rates.
“The impact of COVID has not returned to normal and we have seen an increase in student [mental health] struggles,” Dougher said.
Past research highlights that QPR training can have a positive effect on participants and their communities. Dr. Gonzalez cited a study by researchers Clay Litteken and Elizabeth Sale for the state of Missouri that revealed the efficacy of QPR and other programs like it. The study’s results show that “QPR [continues] to be recommended in state suicide prevention plans as an effective gatekeeper program with long-term effects,” such as in states like Alaska, Washington, and Missouri.
WashU already offers the Kognito program, an avatar-based training course that addresses mental health topics like suicide, according to The Source.
In a study from 2019, the researchers found that after having a sample of “at risk” students complete Kognito training, the students were twice as likely to seek help.
“Our interest in QPR and in Kognito is focused around increasing awareness of suicide factors, resources, and conversational skill building,” Dougher said.
He added that QPR and Kognito help to build support between students, faculty, and staff, allowing “the community to recognize these connections, develop the skills, and know the resources that can support those with acute [mental health] struggles.”
To reach people with no personal stake in the struggle with suicidal thoughts and behaviors, the Habif Health Promotion Team has launched a campus-wide marketing campaign. The team’s director, Arie Baker, wants QPR to strengthen the WashU community for everyone.
“We see this training as a way for our community to come together and care for one another,” Baker said.
At the moment, the University does not plan on offering QPR training for academic credit, Dr. Gonzalez said.
As more members of the WashU community discover and use QPR, Dr. Gonzalez hopes that the training program will “destigmatize” conversations about mental health at the University.
“In a lot of cases of suicide or suicidal ideation, there is no one to intervene,” Gonzalez said. “[QPR] is not foolproof — nothing is — but I think that if [it can get] our community to talk more about [suicide] and how to help each other, that is a big step forward.”
