By Ana Espino | Published on August 26, 2025 | 2 min read
#SuicidePrevention #Education
#MentalHealth
Suicide is a
leading cause of
preventable death, affecting all age groups and representing a major global
public health concern.
Health and social care students are expected to play a
central role in prevention. Yet, their initial training often includes
little
specific content on identifying and managing suicidal risk.
Existing
educational approaches suffer from several limitations: lack of
standardization, insufficient evaluation of long-term impact, and poor
integration of interprofessional aspects.
The challenge, therefore, lies in
designing a
structured curriculum that builds
knowledge, practical
skills, and
confidence to intervene effectively. Against this backdrop, this study was
conducted to
describe the process of developing and implementing a suicide
prevention training program for health and social care students, using a
collaborative, evidence-based approach.
Should prevention begin in the
classroom?
The project followed a
four-step
methodology: needs analysis, co-construction of content with clinical and
educational experts
, pilot implementation, and
formative evaluation. The
curriculum developed included fundamental knowledge on suicide, risk and protective
factors, communication techniques, and risk assessment methods. Crisis
intervention and referral strategies were also integrated. Learning relied on a blended
approach,
combining lectures, case studies, role plays, and
realistic
simulations. Results showed a
significant improvement in students’
theoretical
knowledge about risk factors, warning signs, and intervention strategies for
suicide prevention.
Perceived competence also increased, as did students’
confidence in addressing suicide with patients or service users.
Questionnaires and interviews
further highlighted the
relevance of practical role-play scenarios. The
interdisciplinary dimension of the program was particularly valued for
enhancing
role understanding, collaborative communication, and the adoption of
a
holistic approach to care. Overall, these results confirm the effectiveness
and relevance of the educational approach in preparing future professionals to
intervene with skill and confidence in suicide prevention.
Learning today to protect tomorrow
Suicide remains a
major public
health issue, requiring urgent and ambitious adaptation of health and social
care training. Findings from this program show that a structured curriculum,
co-designed with clinical and educational experts and grounded in scientific
evidence, can significantly strengthen knowledge, practical skills, and the
confidence of future professionals in suicide prevention.
However, these conclusions are based
on
short-term evaluations conducted with a
limited number of participants,
which restricts their
generalizability. To maximize impact, future steps should
include
longitudinal evaluations to assess the
lasting effect of training on
real-world professional practices, as well as
adaptation of content to
different cultural and organizational contexts.
Finally, the systematic integration
of suicide prevention modules into health and social care curricula would
ensure broad and sustainable dissemination of the skills needed for effective
and compassionate support of people at risk.
Read next: Vitamin D deficiency: a risk for the mind?
About the author – Ana EspinoPhD in Immunology, specialized in Virology
