Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Suicide prevention awareness campaign
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Two giveaways, a suicide awareness wristlet and awareness beads, will help promote the "Help Make Life Worth Living for Everyone" theme for the month. Beads will be available at the USI Student Involvement Fair from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, September 8. The beads acknowledge the ways in which suicide and mental health issues affect student lives and the lives of their loved ones. Purple beads signify a loss of someone to suicide green beads, knowledge of a struggle with a mental health issue and gold beads, support of the campaign. Counseling Center Open House September 14 and 15 "Students and faculty often tell me,'I didn't know there was a Counseling Center on campus,'" said Leslie M. Smith, assistant director of the Counseling Center. "The Open House will be an opportune time for faculty and staff to stop by, meet the staff, and learn about the services available," she said. "Students will have the opportunity to have mental health screenings with a counselor, computer biofeedback gaming, massage trial demonstrations, and tour the center. Refreshments will be available both days." The Open House, scheduled from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on September 14 and 15, will be open to all persons on campus. The Counseling Center is located in the Orr Center, Rm. 1051. Vanderburgh County Coroner to give presentation September 28 A presentation on suicide will be the culminating event for the month. Annie Groves, coroner for Vanderburgh County, will present a program about incidence and impact of suicide in our community at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, September 28 in Mitchell Auditorium in the Health Professions Center. Groves has served for over 22 years in various roles in the Coroner's Office. She was elected coroner in 2008. Prior to that she served eight years as chief deputy coroner. She is the first woman in Vanderburgh County to be elected coroner. She is a court-certified expert witness with a specialty area in the death investigations of infants and children. Groves serves on the board of directors for the Mental Health of America and the Ark Crisis Child Care Center. She is an advisor to the Southwestern Indiana Suicide Prevention Coalition. Other programs provided by the Counseling Center during September are: September 20, 21, 22, and 24, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Take a Screening/Talk to Someone. Walk in appointments accepted during this time. September 30, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Counseling Center will have a table at the USI employees' wellness fair to distribute information on suicide prevention with a focus on ways to help a friend. As part of the suicide prevention observation, counselors will train on September 23 to become instructors on suicide prevention. A $900 grant from the Indiana Collegiate Action Network is making the suicide prevention awareness campaign possible. The grant was awarded to Smith. |
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