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Suicide rates among Oregon youth are down for the third year in a row, from 2019 to 2021, according to recently released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Though youth suicide rates have dropped 26% from a recent peak in 2018, that lower rate is primarily among youth who identified as white. Though Oregon’s numbers are too small to analyze statistically, national trends show that rates among other ethnicities remained the same or increased.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people ages 5 to 24, said the press release.

That said, local efforts in Oregon have helped bring youth suicide rates down.

The Deschutes County suicide prevention program provides training and consultation to schools, media outlets and other organizations to both increase healing and prevent suicide death and behaviors, said Caroline Suiter, the program’s mental health promotion strategist, and Bethany Kuschel, suicide prevention project coordinator.

The program also manages and coordinates the Central Oregon Suicide Prevention Alliance, a regional organization that serves Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties.

The suicide prevention program is currently working on a three-year grant-funded project in schools to reduce suicidal behaviors. The program has also started an application called First Step, which is a tool to find mental health resources, said Kuschel.

“In the past couple of years, we get to go into more and more schools and really create this entire community of school staff that can recognize warning signs that someone might be at risk,” said Kuschel.

Suiter noted that higher suicide rates among youth who identify as people of color have more to do with adverse experiences, or to not having access to help.

“Another challenge that we have around looking at these rates and trends is in the data collection.

The way we collect data in Oregon is changing, but historically, the way we collect data doesn’t provide enough information to paint a picture about a story that’s as complex as suicide,” said Kuschel.

There are many factors that influence these rates, she said, including cultural beliefs and historical barriers.

Both Kuschel and Suiter are interested in improving data collection to get a better understanding of the factors.

Adi’s Act, which requires schools to have suicide prevention plans for youth in kindergarten through 12th grade, was passed in 2019.

The suicide prevention program team also helps schools to update their plans.

Arthur Lehman is a board member of the Central Oregon chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. The alliance focuses on improving people’s quality of life through education, advocacy and support.

One aspect of its education is classes between peers or between families to discuss and learn coping strategies for living with a person with a mental health condition.

All of the classes the alliance runs are free, said Lehman.

Lehman himself has been focusing on getting a 50-minute program for schools called Ending the Silence off the ground again, after it lagged during the pandemic.

“In the end, if I did a thousand presentations in Bend, and it just caught one life, that would be worth every bit of hard work,” said Lehman. “Just one life is worth it all.”

Though youth rates were down, suicide rates rose among other age groups in 2021.

Preliminary data for 2022, which won’t be released by the CDC until next spring, indicates that Oregon will not see more of a decrease in youth suicide rates.

Deschutes County 24-Hour Crisis Line: Crisis services is a 24-hour program that responds by phone or face-to-face.

541-322-7500 ext. #9

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals in the United States.

Call 9-8-8

Text 9-8-8

Visit 988lifeline.org to message.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the United States.

1-800-273-TALK (8255); TEXT “273Talk” to 839863

For Veterans press #1

Ayuda en español llame (for Spanish language call) 1-888-628-9454, TEXT “MIL1” to 839863

For Hearing and speech impaired call 1-800-799-4TTY (4889)

Oregon YouthLine: YouthLine is a free, confidential teen-to-teen crisis and help line

877-968-8491 or text “teen2teen” to 83983