Suicide Prevention (QPR) Training ~ Reflection
QPR Training Reflection
Death by suicide is a phenomenon that has been around for centuries. It is a complex and multifaceted issue that mental health practitioners are still working to adequately articulate and grasp to date. Many factors play a role in one’s decision to end their life, making it hard to predict or address. I did not feel like the QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) training sufficiently described what suicidal individuals in crisis might actually be experiencing.
Although many aspects of suicidal thinking were not addressed in the training, I still found it useful for several reasons. Firstly, any training that opens a dialogue related to mental health and suicide is by nature a productive and fruitful one. Even if it does not equip its trainees with a full in-depth analysis of the issue, it gets them thinking about relevant questions and potential pathways to desired outcomes. In this sense, the QPR training was great. In addition to providing important facts and myths about individuals who are considering suicide, it got me thinking about things I should and should not say to someone in crisis. Similarly, it got me thinking about warning signs that might help predict if someone is struggling and in need of assistance.
Something that I have not considered in the past that I learned in the QPR training is whether it is even productive to inquire about suicidal intentions in the first place. The idea that it is not harmful to ask someone about their suicidal intentions was not necessarily shocking, but somewhat new. I think that the issue of if and how to inquire about suicidal intentions can be rather nuanced. As mentioned in the training, there are definitely ways to ask about suicide that can do more harm than good. I think that they could have emphasized a bit more that, given how sensitive these matters can be, it can be harmful to ask if it isn’t done in the right way. Another item that I have not thought of in the past, is regarding warning signs. In the training, it mentions that a sudden shift to a positive mood can be indicative of someone having already come to terms with ending their life. Being aware that a mood shift can be a warning sign, even when positive, is somewhat counterintuitive but makes sense and I think is good to be aware of when trying to implement suicide prevention.
While I am aware that the QPR training is a more straightforward basic guide, I am glad that I had the opportunity to learn a few new things and contemplate the issue of suicide prevention more seriously. This is an issue that I care about a great deal. A primary reason for my pursuit of a career in psychology is to help people navigate away from suicide and toward healthy and fulfilling lives. I really hope that these aspirations for helping others will indeed materialize. [I’ve done some work with military veterans and the issue of suicide came up a lot. I can go on about this topic for quite a while, but I think I’ll leave it here…]