Linking Education and Awareness for

Depression and Suicide (LEADS) for Youth

Suicide Awareness Voices of Education

Date of 2012
Publication
Cost $ 125 (includes materials, resources and school crisis management plan)

Age Range Designed for students in grades 9-12

Lesson Plans Three 30-60 minute lesson plans. Each lesson plans contains a
comprehensive outline and a short presentation.

Purpose of LEADS creates opportunities for conversations around suicide,

Curriculum depression, and the associated stigma. It focuses on the signs and
symptoms of depression, warning signs of suicide, and barriers/benefits
to seeking help. The program emphasizes linking students and teacher
to community resources and empowering students to get help for
themselves or others.

After completion of LEADS, students will have an increased knowledge

of depression, depression symptoms, and suicide prevention; an
increased ability to identify school and community resources; and an
increased knowledge and skills regarding seeking help.

Supporting Suicide Prevention Resource Center designated this program as a

Evidence "program with evidence of effectiveness." Their study compared post-
test scores of students at three schools who received LEADS with post-
test scores of students at five schools who only received a suicide
presentation (not LEADS). Their study looked at three outcomes:

1. Knowledge of depression and suicide

At post-test a significantly higher percentage of students in the

intervention than control group answered correctly true to the
statements "having a family history of depression increases someone's
risk of depression and/or suicide" (p < .001) and "writing about death
can be a warning sign of suicide (p = .27), and correctly "answered false"
to the statement "people who are depressed cry all the time" (p = .21).
Supporting 2. Perceptions of Depression and Suicide
Evidence
(cont.) A significantly higher percentage of students in the intervention than
control group "strongly agree" or "agreed" with the statements
"depression is a medical illness, like diabetes, " (p < .001) and "suicide
should be talked about in the classroom" (p = .008). A significantly lower
percentage of students in the intervention than control group "strongly
agreed" or "agreed" with the statements "People who complete suicide
are not good at dealing with stress" (p < .001) and "people who
complete suicide are crazy," (p = .025).

3. Knowledge of Suicide Prevention Resources

A significantly lower percentage of students in the intervention than

control group "strongly agreed" or "agreed" with the statements "people
who complete suicide are not good at dealing with stress" (p < .001) and
"people who complete suicide are crazy," (p = .025). A significantly
higher percentage of students in the intervention than control groups
were able to identify suicide prevention resources (p <.001).

Cross No population/culture specific adaptations of the intervention were

Cultural created by SAVE. The study conducted by the Suicide Prevention
Fairness Resource Center did not use a diverse population (76% White, 12%
Race/Ethnicity unspecified, 6% Black, 5% Asian).

Practicality LEADS is reasonably priced (only $125). "KyleCares" is a non-profit

organization out of Attleboro that assists high schools with the
implementation of mental health awareness and suicide prevention
programs. If you reached out to them, they could potentially cover the
cost.

LEADS is short and easy to implement. At the most, the whole program
will take three hours. The program in adaptable and is presented in
multiple formats (handouts or PowerPoint). The materials are organized
and thoroughly outlined.
.
LEADS may not be the best fit for diverse populations.

LEADS is one of the only suicide-related programs that is solely

curriculum based and doesn't involve other elements such as
educational videos, screenings, or gatekeeper trainings.