Outcome Evaluation of a Public Health Approach to Suicide Prevention in an American Indian Tribal Nation

The efficacy of 15 years of a public health-oriented suicidal behaviour prevention program among youths living on an American Indian reservation was evaluated. Both descriptive & linear regression analyses indicated that a substantial drop occurred in suicidal gestures & attempts. Suicide deaths neither declined significantly nor increased, although the total number of self-destructive acts declined by 73%. The sequential decrease in age-specific rates for suicide attempts & gestures is indicative of the program’s success. (40 refs.)