September is Suicide Prevention Month, and the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation (OSPF) and its steering committee partnered to develop a Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Older Adults. This toolkit targets the needs of older adults, caregivers, and professionals to assist in identifying and addressing warning signs and risk factors, plus learn how to best provide immediate and long-term support.
The toolkit results from six 2025 listening sessions conducted in high-risk Ohio counties (Belmont, Brown, Clark, Franklin, Mahoning, and Ottawa), for adults ranging in ages 41-98 answering questions to determine their perceptions and concerns about suicide. The Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Older Adults aims to help raise awareness and increase opportunities for help and prevention.
Montgomery County’s Alcohol, Drug Addition, and Mental Health Services (ADAMS) states that suicide is more than an individual crisis but rather a public health concern impacting individuals, families and relationships, communities, and systems. ADAMS reports that as of 2024, suicide was the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, and older adulthood brings unique challenges that can intersect with less visible suicide risk. Potential personal risks include observed changes in connections, mood, functioning, plus thoughts or behaviors around death or dying, requiring tailored prevention through healthcare, families, communities, and systems.
Links and more information are available here:
- Toolkit link: Identifying-and-Reducing-Suicide-Risk-in-Older-Ohioans-Pages1.pdf
- Requests for paper copies of the toolkit can be sent to: older.adults@ohiospf.org.
- Additional information and help is available through the National Alliance on Mental Illness website and the 988 Lifeline.
