Suicide among military and veteran communities around the world remains far too high.
With over 30 years of evidence-based training and support for our Service Members and Veterans, LivingWorks is the world leader in community-based suicide prevention skills training. We are working diligently to empower Service Members, Veterans, their families, and their support providers so that everyone can be part of the solution.
Since the 1990s, LivingWorks has trained hundreds of thousands of military personnel and Veterans across the globe.
Following the 2009 US Army LivingWorks ASIST survey, the confidence of the participants willing to help a person with the thought of suicide increased from 38% to 90%.
LivingWorks training at Hurlburt Field yielding remarkable drop in suicides.
Hurlburt Field sits in an idyllic spot along Florida’s Emerald Coast. Air Force Special Operations Command has 10,000 personnel at the installation including active duty and civilians. Given the nature of special operations and scaled-up activity since 9/11, the installation was seeing a higher-than-average number of suicides with approximately five to nine suicides a year, including civilian employees.
The leadership knew it had a serious problem to address so the base collaborated with LivingWorks to receive training in suicide prevention. The base trainers then combined one of LivingWorks training programs, LivingWorks safeTALK, with their in-processing at Hurlburt and included spouses. LivingWorks safeTALK teaches trainees to recognize when someone is thinking about suicide and connect that person to support. The support team was trained in LivingWorks ASIST, another LivingWorks program that teaches people to provide suicide interventions and keep others safe.
The remarkably effective and innovative in-processing combination known as Commando Ready equips all new airmen with the half-day LivingWorks safeTALK training and the drop in suicides on the base is impressive. The Air Force has a calculation based on their suicide prevention program that allows for predictability based on five-year data sets.
“Based on five years of data and the number that we had, rates per thousand and so forth, it came to 260 something days. We went almost 650 before we actually hit a point where we had another suicide,” said Dexter Mitchell, a retired service member who now acts as a community support coordinator at the installation. He is trained in both LivingWorks safeTALK and LivingWorks ASIST.
Based on the buzz this reduction in suicides is creating, Hurlburt is getting calls from bases around the country—from Missouri to California and states in between—who want to duplicate. The simplicity and accessibility of widespread LivingWorks safeTALK training with a smaller group on base LivingWorks ASIST-trained creates a community-wide safety network among the airmen and their families.
A best practice model for integrating LivingWorks training into your setting is to consider all the courses below being offered to people in various positions. By training leaders and support staff, as well as active and retired personnel, you are empowering entire communities who can all support one another to create a network of safety.
A 90 minute, online training that helps learners develop foundational skills to recognize when someone may be thinking of suicide and connect them to further help.
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Learn to talk openly about suicide, reach out to someone with thoughts of suicide, and connect them with further support in a half-day, face-to-face workshop. This more in-depth training also allows learners to practice skills and helps to address myths and barriers around suicide.
Recognized as the gold standard in suicide intervention training, LivingWorks ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) is a two-day interactive and in-person workshop in suicide first-aid. Learners become ready, willing and able to intervene with someone who has thoughts of suicide, and help them develop a safety plan, access help and find hope.
LivingWorks Faith is an online program that empowers Christian faith leaders to increase safety from suicide and minister to those who have experienced suicide loss. Faith training provides hope-centered, safety-focused interventions, and enriches life promoting ministries in support of purposeful living and self-care.
“The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) provides comprehensive peer-based support to all those who are grieving the death of a loved one who served. The population we serve have all suffered a traumatic loss and are therefore more at risk of suicide. TAPS has integrated LivingWorks ASIST training for all staff members and it has been a vital tool in keeping our population safe and instilling confidence for our staff.”
“While the statistic of 20 veterans dying by suicide a day lives in the national consciousness, the solutions live in our communities. At Team RWB, we’ve been partnering with LivingWorks to educate over 2,000 volunteer leaders to engage our veterans to make suicide safer communities in 217 chapters across the country. Leadership and community engagement matters.”
“LivingWorks ASIST is an easy-to-understand and practical way for every individual to approach a potential suicidal person.”
“I have used LivingWorks safeTALK with much success with Navy and Coast Guard commands. Participants leave feeling more ready, willing, and able to help a person at risk for suicide.”
Please fill out the following form to receive information about hosting a private face to face workshop for your organization/community group, or receiving a set of Start online training licenses.
