Program aims

Connecting with People (CwP) mental health training programmes are designed to offer a whole organisational approach to improve the response shown to people in distress.  The training is extensively peer-reviewed by international experts in self-harm and suicide prevention, people with lived experience, practitioners and third sector (NGO) experts.

CwP is a compassionate approach to working with a person who experiences suicide distress.   It is an internationally recognised suicide and self-harm mitigation and prevention program built upon latest evidence-based principles and best practice available in the field of suicide prevention.

CwP aims to:

  • Reduce the shame and stigma that is generally associated with suicide
  • Support the principle that suicide is not inevitable and that people who experience suicide distress are ambivalent about dying
  • It moves towards greater focus on compassion, safeguarding and co-designed safety plans.
  • Provide a clinical governance framework and appropriate tools (including the SAFE-Tool) to build knowledge and understanding, and confidence to support people in suicidal distress
  • Offer a common language to describe the nature and intent of suicidal thoughts. This enables greater clarity, accuracy and consistency between clinicians, consumers, families, carers and organisations. It also improves the quality of documentation.

CwP is the recommended approach to suicide mitigation is South Australia and has been provided to over 6000 people in community, NGO’s and clinical services.   Accredited trainers in South Australia are licensed to provide free training to different sectors including:

  • Government-funded health and community services
  • The department of Correctional Services (DCS)
  • Adelaide Primary health Network (APHN) funded services
  • Country and Outback Health

There are eight modules which allow a flexible approach to tailor to the needs of either community or service-based training, these are:

  • Suicide Awareness
  • Suicide Response Part 1
  • Suicide Response Part 2
  • Self-Harm Awareness
  • Self-Harm Response
  • Emotional Resilience
  • Compassion at Work
  • Emotional Resilience for Professionals

The focus for clinical services is to undertake three core modules initially, these are the Suicide Awareness for Professionals, which is the mandatory precursor to the Suicide Response Parts 1 & 2 modules. Each takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete. The remaining modules are available upon request and further discussion, to build compassion and emotional resilience within a workplace mental health and wellbeing strategy. There is no requirement to complete all modules beyond the Suicide Awareness and Suicide Response modules. It is also:

  • The South Australian approach to suicide mitigation and is a core component of the still current South Australian Suicide Prevention Plan 2017-2021.
  • A Suicide Prevention Australia (SPA - Australia’s leading suicide prevention body) Accredited program and,
  • Won the prestigious Queen’s Award for International Trade for Outstanding Short-Term Growth in Overseas Business in 2022.

Cost

There is no allocated cost for CwP Training.