KVC Hospitals Participates in National Suicide Prevention Gathering, Aims for Zero Suicide in Our Communities
Kansas City, KS (PRWEB) July 07, 2015 -- On June 24-25, 2015, KVC Hospitals participated in the second National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention Zero Suicide Academy in Washington, D.C KVC Hospitals was one of 20 organizations selected nationally to attend the event. During the Academy, organizations were presented with tools and resources to improve care and safety for those in their care who are at risk for suicide and developed action plans for saving lives. KVC’s children’s psychiatric hospitals, including KVC Prairie Ridge Hospital in Kansas City, Kan., each year serve thousands of children and youth who struggle with depression, anxiety, trauma, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts, feelings of violence and other challenges.
“Zero Suicide has the potential to transform health care systems so that anyone at risk for suicide will receive effective and optimal care when they seek help,” said Julie Goldstein Grumet, Director of Prevention and Practice, Suicide Prevention Resource Center, and part of the leadership team for the Action Alliance’s Zero Suicide priority. “The organizations who attended the Academy are pioneers in their dedication to improved suicide care.”
Zero Suicide is a commitment to suicide prevention in health and behavioral health care systems. It is also a specific set of tools and strategies, as well as a concept and a practice. Its core proposition is that suicide deaths for people under care are preventable and that the bold goal of zero suicides among persons receiving care is an aspirational challenge that health systems should accept. The Zero Suicide approach aims to improve care and outcomes for individuals at risk of suicide in health care systems. It represents a commitment to patient safety – the most fundamental responsibility of health care – and also to the safety and support of clinical staff who treat and support suicidal patients. Resources can be found at http://www.zerosuicide.com.
The Action Alliance promotes the adoption of “zero suicides” as an organizing goal for clinical systems by providing support for efforts to transform care through leadership, policies, practices, and outcome measurement. This Action Alliance priority builds on the momentum of the 2011 report released by the Action Alliance’s Clinical Care and Intervention Task Force, Suicide Care in Systems Framework.
About the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention
The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention (http://www.ActionAllianceforSuicidePrevention.org) is the public-private partnership working to advance the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention and make suicide prevention a national priority. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, through the Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) operates the Secretariat for the Action Alliance, which was launched in 2010 by former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and former U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates with the goal of saving 20,000 lives in five years.
About KVC Hospitals
KVC Hospitals is a nonprofit organization that each year serves thousands of children and adolescents who struggle with depression, anxiety, trauma, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts and feelings of violence. Its two children’s psychiatric hospitals in Kansas — KVC Prairie Ridge Hospital in Kansas City and KVC Wheatland Hospital in Hays — offer acute/inpatient and residential psychiatric treatment. KVC uses innovative, evidence-based treatment approaches to ensure each child’s safety and wellbeing. In addition to providing psychiatric services to children, KVC Hospitals provides consulting to organizations on trauma-informed care and other important topics. The organization is accredited by The Joint Commission, endorsed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and part of KVC Health Systems. Learn more at http://www.kvchospitals.org.
Jenny Kutz, KVC Health Systems, http://www.kvc.org, +1 913-322-4994, [email protected]
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