Utah School Counselor Association Annual Fall Conference

Suicide impacts every community in Utah. Preliminary data from the Utah Department of Health showed more than 600 Utahns died from suicide in 2017. Youth suicides in Utah increased 141.3% since 2015, compared to an increase of 23.5% nationally and is now the leading cause of death for Utah youth aged 10-17. We, as a community, all play a part in decreasing these preventable deaths and none of us can do it alone. The way in which we talk about suicide is a powerful tool that can either increase risk among vulnerable individuals or promote resiliency, encourage help-seeking, publicize prevention successes, and encourage actions that help prevent suicide. The words you write, the images you convey, and the social media posts you create all have an impact on individuals considering suicide. In addition, the way in which a school administrator responds to a suicide crisis can have a direct effect on other at-risk youth within the school community. Research shows that news media accounts of suicide can contribute to suicide contagion, particularly among youth. The risk of contagion is related to the amount, duration, prominence, and content of media coverage.