Suicide Prevention Across the Community: Evaluation of Mental Health Training for Multiple Gatekeeper Groups

Introduction: Suicide rates in the U.S. are higher than the global average, with rural areas experiencing even greater rates. This study investigated whether a single suicide prevention training could improve knowledge, awareness, and intention to act among various gatekeeper populations in Kansas, a rural state with elevated suicide rates.

Methods: Licensed clinical psychologists at a public university in Kansas developed an evidence-based suicide prevention training program, offered online to multiple subgroups: university faculty, staff, and students, health care workers, and community members (voluntarily), as well as high school staff and students (compulsorily). The study employed a reliable, validated instrument to assess participants' knowledge, awareness, and intention to act using a Likert-type scale. Participants also reported whether they had completed prior suicide prevention training. A total of 865 participants provided retrospective pre/post responses, and the data were analyzed using paired samples t-tests and one-way ANOVA/Kruskal-Wallis tests.

Results: Overall, participants in all subgroups, regardless of prior training, showed statistically significant pre/post increases across all measures. While no significant differences were found in learning between recruitment subgroups, variations were identified based on the number of previous trainings completed.

Conclusions: The findings support the effectiveness of a single suicide prevention training across diverse populations, suggesting important implications for targeting training efforts and optimizing resource allocation in high-need environments.