Terry Halifax
Northern News Services
Hay River (Apr 06/01) - A three-week workshop in suicide prevention brought a greater understanding of a problem that has taken 14 lives in the NWT in the past year.
The program offered by Universal Spirits delivers the lessons through the popular Education method. First developed in Brazil to teach people to read, the method encourages participants to learn through sharing their personal experiences and role-playing.
Program facilitator Pauline Plamondon said the program was funded through Health and Social Services.
"Almost any walk of life will take this course," she said. "We get care-givers, professionals and teachers."
The first week is focussed on grieving and how a community accepts the loss.
"Some people don't understand the whole cycle of grieving and they'll get stuck in anger or despair," Plamondon said. "It becomes a barrier to them."
The second week is about skill development and assessment. Through role-playing, the participants gain experience in dealing with potential suicides.
Plamondon said the level of risk is determined by the answers to three questions: are you thinking of killing yourself? Have you thought about how you are going to do it? Do you have the means of killing yourself?
Facilitator Linda Todd said the thought is commonplace, but risk increases when people plan the act.
"A lot of people think about killing themselves," Todd said. "It's not uncommon but you can pass though that."
The person at risk and the caregiver will put a plan together to cope with the problems that lead to suicidal thoughts. The root of the thoughts come from many factors.
"With aboriginal people, it's because of a loss of our culture, language, justice, jobs and loved ones," Plamondon said. "When a person is thinking of killing themselves, they have tunnel vision -- they can't see anything except what's right in front of them."
The third week is about leadership and strategic planning on how to make the community aware of the problem and what the caregivers can do to help.
Program participant Bev Heron works for the Tawow Society in Fort Smith as a councilor. She feels the program should be mandatory caregivers.
"I've been working in a shelter for seven years and I feel this is a necessity for shelter workers," Heron said.
The face-to-face acting out of the situation has had a lasting impact for her and very different from the intervention work she's done in the past.
"At the shelter it's always on the phone, so to see it here, in the group has been very helpful," she said.
