St. Luke's to partner with Mountain Home in $16 million youth suicide-prevention trial

Anna Raiden, research scientist with St. Luke's Health System, told trustees St. Luke's will partner with Mountain Home as part of the Dartmouth Project, a federally funded trial comparing two evidence-based suicide-prevention programs for adolescents. "So we are able to support this because we got a $16,000,000 grant on a national grant," she said; Mountain Home is one of seven partner districts.

Raiden described the two programs to be compared: SOS (Signs of Suicide), which uses video vignettes and a short classroom intervention and an optional parent/community component that teaches the ACT response (acknowledge, care, tell), and YAM (Youth Aware of Mental Health), a youth-driven program delivered over five classroom sessions emphasizing discussion and practice. Participation in the research evaluation component is optional and requires parental consent.

The programs are targeted at students in grades 8–10 because evidence shows YAM is less reliable with younger students and older grades make scheduling difficult. Raiden said St. Luke's will provide staff certified in both programs for delivery, and the grant includes funding for training so schools can sustain whichever program proves most effective after the trial concludes.

Trustees asked whether training and parent sessions would be available beyond participating grades; Raiden said teacher training and some parent training could be open to other grade levels. The board did not take formal action but expressed appreciation for the partnership and asked to receive updates as the trial progresses.