Resource Tag: UNITED STATES. ALASKA

This paper presents a clinical case report & provides a review of the available literature on fetal alcohol syndrome & the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders & suicidality to highlight important implications for providers. Almost 6% of adolescents evaluated by the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders diagnostic clinic at the Alaska Native Medical Center had been seen […]

Factors correlated with suicidal behaviour in a predominantly Alaska Native region of Alaska are described, & the correlates relating to fatal & nonfatal suicide behaviours in this indigenous population are distinguished. Suicide data from the region (1990-2001) are aggregated & compared to 2000 American census data using chi-squared tests. Multivariable logistic regression was used to […]

A 5-item, open-ended survey focussing on community members’ perceptions of suicide causes, warning signs, & protective factors was administered in the 12 Native Alaskan villages served by the Maniilaq Association. A total of 382 surveys were completed. The results showed villagers believe a community-based approach is most beneficial. Many risk factors for suicide were associated […]

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Depression occurs at a significant rate in the U.S. population. Untreated depressive symptoms are a primary risk factor for suicide. Studies show that a significant percentage of individuals who commit suicide had visited their health care providers in the months before their deaths. Alaska ranks number one in the nation for suicide. Routine screening for […]

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This document presents the Alaska Suicide Prevention Plan. After a summary of the epidemiology of suicide in Alaska, the 13 goals of the Plan, along with developed approaches for achieving these, are laid out. Resources for prevention are provided, along with a glossary of terms & sample templates & draft plans.

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This paper presents a brief history of Alaskan natives, discussing concerns regarding the mental health & emotional values of the Inupiat people caught in a conflict between traditional cultural values & the demands of the present modern society, & reviewing methods of intervention presently being utilized to assist the Inupiat people in moving along with […]

This article describes how rates of violent death, including deaths from accidents, suicides, & homicides, vary among Alaskans by race, sex, age, marital status, & place of residence. Data is based on a computer file of death certificates of Alaskans who died between 1980 & 1990. To improve the comparisons of Alaska & U.S. average […]

This article presents the Alaska Supreme Court ruling that denied that the state’s constititution’s gurarantees of privacy & liberty implied a right to physician-assisted suicide. Several similar American legal judgments are presented & discussed. (SC)

A retrospective review of hospital records from the Alaska Native Medical Center is presented for 33 Alaska Native suicide completers who died between 1980 & 1984. Suicide rates for Alaska Natives were twice the national average during the study period. The only significant difference between the suicide & control groups was the history of a […]

Workshop held in Iqaluit, Nunavut, March 14 & 15, 2003.

The authors examined the effects of four representative boarding schools on 132 Alaskan Eskimo adolescents during their freshman & sophomore years. Forty-nine percent of the freshmen developed school-related social & emotional disturbances; 25% of these problems were judged serious. High levels of emotional disturbance were also found during the students’ sophomore year. The findings and […]

This publication presents a draft version of the Alaska Suicide Prevention Plan designed by the Statewide Suicide Prevention Council. The themes, goals, methods, strategies, & mission of the plan are outlined with the goal of making this report a resource that can be used by anyone concerned about the health & well being of Alaskans.

This report summarizes the Alaska Statewide Suicide Prevention Council’s accomplishments related to its central work priorities for FY ’02-03 in the 10 months since the last report to the Legislature, April 2002. Specific findings & additional activities of the Council are detailed throughout the report. Council goals for 2003 are also presented, which build upon […]

Includes a comment on the article by M D Swenson, entitled “A Story About Suicide in the Arctic,” published in Jama, v.286, no.8, (22-29 August 2001), p.919

This article discusses an innovative suicide prevention program which has young Alaska Natives in the village of Brevig Mission learning to build & paddle sea kayaks.

This unique paper, which details the story of an Arctic Alaska Native community, reframes the traditional white western perception of treatment- both physical & mental. In ‘Kelengakutelleghpat’, Michael J. Terry offers us a window into a world where entire communities can come together to address issues of trauma. This paper saddens us because it brings […]

This article provides a critical review of selected preventive intervention programs that address suicide within American Indian & Alaska Native populations. For each intervention included in the review, a description of its targeted population group, risk & protective factors addressed, intervention method, research design, program implementation, & outcomes is provided. Implications for practice & policy […]

Issues of the mental health of arctic & subarctic Alaska Natives are explored. Their sociopolitical history is described demonstrating how intervention by European Americans in Alaska has prompted a self-alienation of Native peoples that has contributed to exorbitant suicide rates & other problems. These developments are contrasted with traditional lifestyles. Recommendations are made about the […]