Suicide Prevention Training Will Be Held Monday

A suicide prevention presentation will be held next week as the next step in an ongoing discussion about suicide in Shorewood and throughout the North Shore.

The training – which is designed only for adult parents and community members – is called Question, Persuade and Refer (QPR). The free training will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 14 in the lower level of the Shorewood Public Library.

This training is a follow-up to the community forum on youth suicide that was held on Aug. 5. The community discussions were initiated in response to the tragic death of 13-year-old Abby Goldberg on July 7.

The training, which is hosted by the village and the school district, will last 90 minutes and there will be a 30-minute question and answer session following the training. 

QPR stands for Questions, Persuade and Refer—three simple steps that anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. People trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone for help. 

QPR is recognized on the National Registry as an evidence-based training program. QPR is an action plan for the Shorewood community that can result in saving lives. 

During the training, attendees will learn to become a gatekeeper, or someone in a position to recognize a crisis and the warning signs that someone may be contemplating suicide. The simple program teaches ordinary citizens how to recognize a mental health emergency, and teaches them how to get a person at risk the help they need.  

Because suicides happen in families – where emergency interventions are more likely to take place – the QPR Institute believes that at least one person per family unit should be trained in QPR. 

The Shorewood training will be facilitated by three experts in the field of mental health: 

• Barbara Moser, MD., who serves as a physician at Norris Student Health Center and is the Co-principal of the UWM Suicide Prevention Project; 

• Nichole Schwerman, MA, CT, who is the Bereavement Coordinator/CISM Coordinator at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin and also serves as the Co-chair of the South East Wisconsin Grief Network

• Peter Wright, the Case Manager at Pathfinders Drop-In Center and the Co-chair of the Prevent Suicide Milwaukee (PSGM) Coalition.