District II Alcohol and Drug Program of Sidney will be conducting an Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) in Glendive on Monday and Tuesday April 29th and 30th from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day. Training will be held at the Glendive Medical Center’s Carney Conference Room located at 202 Prospect Drive in Glendive.
Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) provides participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to recognize persons at risk of suicide and to undertake appropriate management or referral of individual. Suicide and non-fatal suicidal behaviors, ranging from gestures to suicide attempts, are far more common than most people realize. Almost everyone will come into contact with suicidal behaviors in some significant way during their lifetime. Many people are trained to administer first aid to someone having a heart attack, but very few people know emergency first aid for preventing suicide.
The ASIST workshop will deal directly with attitudes about suicide prevention. On the first day of the training, participants will learn how to recognize those persons who might be at risk by identifying a number of different signs and indicators. Some of the major warning signs of suicide include sudden changes in behavior or personality, previous suicide attempts, suicidal statements which express a desire or intention to die, and feelings of depression, helplessness, hopelessness, isolation, and loss. One of the most important first aid skills to have is the ability to ask directly about the suicide intentions of someone you are worried about. Skill development exercises and community networking activities will take up the entire second day of the workshop.
ASIST training is provided free of charge by District II Alcohol & Drug Program in an effort to build the necessary capacity within community members to identify signs of someone in crisis and intervene appropriately to get the help that is needed.
The training is open to the public; however gatekeepers such as teachers, school counselors, medical and mental health professionals, law enforcement, substance abuse treatment counselors, prevention and faith based professionals are encouraged to participate. Training will be facilitated by certified ASIST Trainers, Tim Anderson, Clinical Director District II Alcohol & Drug Program, and Tara Hubing, Counselor, Circle Public Schools with 14 continuing education credits available for counselors, educators and law enforcement. Registration is necessary as class size is limited. To register, please contact Ronda Welnel at District II Alcohol & Drug Program at 433-4097 or email [email protected].
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