Year: 2000 Source: Omega, v.42, no.1, (2000-2001), p.55-69 SIEC No: 20010505

This article discusses the development of a curriculum designed to train long-term care staff in preventing suicide among the elderly & the results of a pilot test of a training program based on that curriculum. The 43 participants significantly improved their scores from pre- to post-test on the knowledge, attitudes, & practices subtests. The knowledge areas in which staff performed the most poorly at pre-test were related to identifying appropriate primary & secondary interventions, the relationship between dementia & suicide, methods of suicide used by the elderly, & an understanding of depression in the elderly. There was a significant relationship between pre-test & post-test scores on all subtests. A large majority of participants had highly positive attitudes toward the program & thought the program had been very useful or useful to them as caregivers. The study demonstrated the need for staff training related to suicide prevention in long-term care as well as the usefulness of even a brief training. (45 refs.)