From National Goals to Local Impact: Building Houston’s Suicide Prevention Coalition to foster hope, resilience and connection

Body of Abstract: In recent years, the U.S. Surgeon General has issued several advisories addressing critical issues impacting mental health, including loneliness, gun violence, social media’s influence on youth, and the well-being of parents, each a significant factor in suicide risk. Over the last two decades, suicide rates in the United States have risen by 36%, with nearly 50,000 lives lost in 2022 alone.

In Texas, suicide rates have risen by 36.7% since 2000. The 25-29 age group has been affected most, experiencing a sharp increase to 69%, followed by the 20-24 age group at 56.9%. Alarmingly, suicide rates among young women ages 13-19 have more than doubled and rates for veterans ages 18-34 surged by 91.6%. Locally, where the population is an estimated 4.8 million, suicide mortality rates increased by 40% from 2001-2004 to 2017-2020.

Access to mental health care remains a critical challenge in our region. In 2021, there were 7,700 registered mental health providers across our three-county area, averaging one provider per 800 residents, significantly below the national ratio of one provider per 350 residents. The gap is especially pronounced in low-income communities, exacerbating disparities.

In 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, along with its Federal Action Plan, outlining four strategic directions for communities addressing suicide prevention. Strategic Direction 1 emphasizes the importance of a community-based, comprehensive approach to suicide prevention. Central to this approach is the development of coalitions that bridge local organizations, non-profits, and community members pooling resources and expertise to create sustainable solutions from prevention and intervention to postvention. A coalition that elevates the best of a community identifies the gaps and helps work with everyone involved to find sustainable solutions. The National Strategy includes 3 more strategic directions: Treatment and Crisis Services; Surveillance, Quality Improvement and Research; and Health Equity in Suicide Prevention; with a total of 15 goals under the 4 strategic directions.
In February 2024, a newly formed suicide prevention coalition launched in a large metropolitan area, guided by the National Strategy as its foundational framework. The coalition focused its efforts to align within the national strategy while allowing those with lived experience to shape its local implementation. We will highlight how the goals of the National Strategy helped guide us as we developed a structure to work toward our ultimate vision to leverage the strengths of organizations, individuals, and partners to enhance suicide prevention across our area, and to actively identify and bridge gaps in our community.

Our mission is to restore human connection, foster hope and resilience in those we serve, and create an environment where everyone feels supported and empowered.

This presentation will outline our journey to build this coalition, including the steps taken from our initial meetings, the tools we used to gain alignment, and the partnerships formed to secure community support. We discuss the establishment of five workgroups following our launch, the strategies we utilized to engage the community, and the successes and challenges in this process, and how we adapted to create more successful outcomes. Additionally, we will share our progress on a multi-phase community needs assessment, highlighting preliminary results from phase one and an overview of the next steps. A key aspect of our coalition’s work has been the integration the voices of individuals with lived experience. Through storytelling workshops, we amplified their voices, and their impact has been central to our efforts. We will also reflect on the lessons learned from working with fiscal agents, securing sponsorships, and transitioning into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, which has been vital in defining our role in the community.

Finally, the presentation will conclude with interactive small group discussions, where participants can explore ways to apply these insights to support suicide prevention efforts in their own communities.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify key elements of the National Strategy that lay the framework for how to structure, implement and assess a community coalition.
• • Summarize approaches and strategies to secure commitment, collaboration and build a sustainable coalition structure.
• Explore actionable strategies that can be adapted and applied to enhance local suicide prevention efforts.