Suicide prevention refers to the actions or measures taken to minimize the likelihood of suicide or suicidal behaviors. Everyone can contribute to suicide prevention no matter their rank, assignment, or time on the job. By conducting a needs assessment to determine how well health and wellness are currently being addressed, agencies may then implement a comprehensive approach to suicide prevention. Emphasis should be placed on having a plan and policy in place before an event occurs. These plans and policies should include suicide prevention, intervention, and response to a suicide death. A comprehensive approach should include the coordination of sustainable support and resources, and therefore identification of individuals who will be responsible for ongoing implementation and who will sustain the initiative and address challenges is necessary. Support and resources should include, but are not limited to, culturally competent mental health professionals, peer support teams, chaplains, and trusted, accessible resources. Consider implementing annual mental health check-ins, along with the required annual physical. Policies should reflect an agency culture that encourages help seeking, supporting one another, and engaging in difficult conversations. 

Objectives of Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Include: Support mental health needs, increase peer supports and comradery, develop resilience skills, encourage communication, foster a help-seeking culture, and ensure department culture aligns with policy and procedure.

Resources

• Assessment Tool
• Comprehensive Framework for Law Enforcement Suicide Prevention 
• Employee Mental Health - Policy Documents 
• Peer Support as a Powerful Tool in Law Enforcement Suicide Prevention
• Policy Guidance for Law Enforcement Agencies
• Providing Officers Support through Police Chaplains
• Suicide Prevention Infographic: Warning Signs

Suicide intervention refers to the action or actions taken by others to prevent a person who is experiencing suicidal thoughts or contemplating suicidal behaviors. The goal of suicide intervention should be preventing the individual from dying by suicide, directing them to appropriate mental health services, and supporting short and long-term recovery. Intervention may be necessary at specific times such as after a critical incident, during job-specific challenges, or when an individual officer is showing signs of suicide risk. 

Objectives of Suicide Intervention Include: Support immediate mental health needs, provide crisis intervention and stabilization, engage in appropriate and necessary communication, ensure safety of individual and others (if necessary), adjust environmental circumstances as needed, connect to mental health treatment and crisis supports as needed, consider lethal means safety, if necessary, ensure appropriate protocol for fitness for duty evaluation is followed.

Resources

• Psychological Fitness for Duty Evaluation Guidelines

The tragic death of a law enforcement officer by suicide requires immediate and ongoing action to support the department, family, and loved ones as they process and work through the impact of loss. Implementing a comprehensive postvention response is a critical component of suicide prevention. Agency response efforts should range from immediate to long term. While it is difficult to plan for a tragedy such as an officer suicide, it is important to be prepared should this happen. Postvention addresses the immediate needs that must be met (e.g., supporting other officers through the crisis), long-term responses to an officer suicide and informs ongoing prevention efforts. Additionally, these key considerations are important after an officer suicide attempt or suicidal behaviors. 

Objectives for suicide postvention include: Consider and support family keeping in mind their wishes, identify and reach out to those personally impacted, deliver appropriate and timely communication acknowledging the complex factors of suicide, provide effective and compassionate support, support agency and unit stabilization, promote healing and post-traumatic growth, reduce risk of suicidal thinking and behavior for those impacted. 

Resources

• After a Suicide in Blue: A Guide for Law Enforcement Agencies
• Chief's Checklist - Responding after an Officer Suicide
• Grief and Loss - Helping Officers Recover and Heal
• Grief and Loss - Helping Officers Recover and Heal - Guidance for Agency Leaders
• Leadership Checklist - 6 Things Command Staff Can Say After a Suicide 
• Leadership Checklist - Having Conversations with a Distressed Officer