If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available now, 24/7. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. 

The existing mental health crisis among children and youth was exacerbated by the stress, trauma, and social isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, impacting particularly youth of color, low-income communities, LGBTQ+ youth, and other vulnerable groups. The 2019-2021 California Healthy Kids Survey found that about 3 out of every 20 secondary students, regardless of grade, seriously considered suicide in the past 12 months.

As part of the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) mission to address this growing mental health crisis, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is piloting a new approach toward youth suicide and suicide attempts by designating them as reportable health events, activating local-level crisis response and resource connections. 

CDPH has selected 10 counties for a $50 million, 3-year pilot program, in which counties, schools, and community-based organizations will provide crisis response and support services to affected youth, family, friends, educators, and others in the community after a youth suicide or youth suicide attempt occurs. Goals of the pilot program include producing tools and data that can help local communities to more effectively prevent and respond to suicide among youth. 

As of October 2023, the 10 counties have begun developing plans for rapid reporting and crisis response activities. With counties widely varying in size and demographics, there is no universal approach. Each county is approaching the pilot differently, tailoring the programs to fit their respective populations and support their existing suicide prevention activities.

“With our partners in these 10 counties, the state of California is listening to youth and families and developing resources and services that can help young people throughout our state during times of crisis,” said Dr. Sohil Sud, CYBHI Director. “We want all youth and their families to know that they are not alone, and that there are people ready to help.” 

Los Angeles County: Data and Partnerships

Los Angeles is the largest county to participate in the pilot and their Department of Public Health, Office of Violence Prevention, will lead the efforts by focusing on gathering real-time data on suicides and suicide attempts from hospital emergency rooms. This level of rapid reporting will alert county staff to where to send crisis support.

The program is also gathering input from youth about what types of crisis response are most effective, providing resources both for youth in crisis and their families and educators about how to intervene. “Young people would have access to the resources that they need early on when they’re exhibiting any signs of depression and anxiety. And this has a training element for those who work with youth to detect what those early signs might be,” said Andrea Welsing, Director of the Los Angeles County Office of Violence Prevention. “We want to give resources and opportunities early on to adults in young people’s lives who can notice signs and symptoms and make the connections.”

Given the size of LA County, the program staff are also focused on mapping the landscape of various mental health and crisis response providers to merge the resources of government and private sector experts. Additionally, LA County is partnering with local organizations by leveraging its resources and reach with the expertise of Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, which is home to the nation’s first and largest Suicide Prevention Center, and Teen Line, a hotline for youth staffed by highly trained teens. 

“We know through this work where some of the gaps are and how we can collaborate and work better together,” said Sandri Kramer, Didi Hirsch Director of Community Relations, adding that the pilot’s goals include creating long-term follow-up with youth in crisis and adding youth-focused mental health resources. “We really want to encourage young people to know that there’s hope and that they’re resilient,” she said. Kramer added that another long-term CYBHI goal is to encourage more teenagers from diverse backgrounds to enter the mental health field so that young people can turn to trained professionals who understand their backgrounds and communities. 

San Joaquin: Bringing Schools into the Loop

In San Joaquin County, with a smaller population of about 800,000 residents compared to LA County’s 10 million, the pilot project activities focus on centralizing efforts. The County Office of Education is leading the pilot with activities such as developing a web-based tracking system for first responders to report any home visit where a student has experienced a traumatic event or has suicidal ideation. The County can then alert school-based personnel to intervene and offer appropriate services for the youth, family, and school community. 

“One of the primary goals is to notify schools in a timely manner and help them with the next steps to take for students. Rather than having a time-lapse from the incident occurrence to when schools are informed and having schools scramble to find the right resources,” said Nora Hana, a Director for Comprehensive Health in the San Joaquin County Office of Education. “One of the other pieces that we added in here is training school districts on youth mental health first aid, so staff are ready to hear the words they may not have been prepared to hear before and are familiar with resources to share.” 

Leaders in the Tracy Unified School District in San Joaquin County recognized the need for this system early on. “Once we receive this alert, we can focus on the student, identify what is going on, provide them with support, and develop a wellness plan for them,” said Samia Basravi, Coordinator of Prevention Services in the Tracy Unified School District. “This will enable us to have a support system in place for students who are experiencing these self-harming thoughts and are proceeding with this kind of negative behaviors.”

There will also be a public website with resources for families and students, including how to find people in their schools and communities who can help with emotional crises. In this way, the county hopes to prevent youth suicides and suicide attempts by providing help before it’s too late.

While the 10 county pilot plans are still being developed and their respective approaches vary, the overall goal remains straightforward, said Cheryl Karp Eskin, Senior Director of LA County’s Teen Line: “The big overarching goal is a world in which young people know there’s hope and that there are resources out there – and that we’re all working together for them.”

Learn more about the Youth Suicide Reporting and Crisis Response Pilots.