Suicide Epidemic Among First Nations Youth: Patterns of Grieving, new Models of Healing

This presentation was based on the research gathered in a pilot program to understand & help First Nations communities in northwestern Ontario deal with the overwhelming grief experienced due to the high incidence of suicide in Nishnabe-Aske communities. In an 8-year period, 72 youth in a population of 14,000 completed suicide. Qualitative methods were used to understand aboriginal perspectives on this epidemic & to explore historical & present-day grieving practices. Syncretic responses, those combining traditional practices & beliefs with modern clinical approaches to the expression & resolution of grief, were discussed with the communities.