Undertaken by researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), the Sources of Strength program will be the subject of a long-term study at high schools across New York and North Dakota.
Developed in the late 1990s by Mark LoMurray alongside other tribal and rural suicide prevention workers in North Dakota, the Sources of Strength program identifies a culturally diverse group of youth leaders to change behaviors through targeted messaging activities.
According to research team leader Peter Wyman, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry at URMC, the program’s objective is to “strengthen how teens handle depression, stress and other problems by training influential teen ‘peer leaders’ who work to change coping practices in their friendship networks.”
Identified youth leaders may include a mix of low-risk and at-risk teens who are trained to influence others to adopt positive coping mechanisms in connection with emotional crisis. The leaders work under the monitoring of adult mentors.
Current statistics reveal that suicide accounts for more deaths in youth and young adults aged 10 to 24 than all other natural causes combined. As many as eight percent of adolescents attempt suicide each year, with up to one third requiring medical attention.
“Sources of Strength is an innovative and promising program,” Wyman said.
No comments:
Post a Comment