Talbert House Trains City of Lebanon Workforce in Suicide Prevention

Talbert House partnered with the City of Lebanon to provide Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) suicide prevention training nearly 100 city employees.

The training, led by Talbert House’s Prevention Services team, included employees from across the city, including utilities workers, administrative staff, department leaders and the city manager. The goal was to help employees recognize warning signs of suicide, respond to someone who may be in crisis and connect them with help.

QPR is an evidence-based suicide awareness and prevention curriculum. QPR stands for Question, Persuade and Refer – three simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. According to the QPR Institute, this was the first report they had received of an entire city workforce being trained in QPR.

“By training the entire workforce, the city is helping create a community where employees know how to recognize the warning signs of suicide,” said Amy Johnson, Talbert House Prevention Supervisor. “QPR gives people the tools and confidence to have a conversation, offer support and connect someone to the help they need.”

The Mental Health Recovery Board Serving Warren and Clinton Counties recognized the City of Lebanon’s commitment to suicide prevention with a recognition plaque presented at the Lebanon City Council meeting on October 27.

"The City of Lebanon's commitment to training employees in QPR suicide prevention training demonstrates the important role that every member of a community can play in saving lives," said Amy Fornshell, Executive Director of the Mental Health Recovery Board Serving Warren and Clinton Counties. "When people across all sectors are equipped to recognize warning signs and connect someone to help, we strengthen the safety net for everyone in our community."