NYS OMH Suicide Prevention Materials Now Available in Russian

ALBANY, NY (09/20/2007)(readMedia)-- Mike Hogan, Ph.D, Commissioner of the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH), today unveiled a Russian language version of OMH’s acclaimed suicide prevention, education and awareness campaign known as SPEAK, at the F.E.G.S. Brooklyn Resource Center in Brooklyn. The SPEAK campaign materials are also available in English, Spanish, and Chinese, and a Haitian-Creole version is in development.

Governor Eliot Spitzer has also proclaimed September 20, 2007 to be Russian American Health Day in New York State.

Commissioner Hogan said “Suicide is tragic and preventable. With awareness of depression and other treatable illnesses, people can be connected to care and hope, rather than isolated and desperate. Therefore, OMH is working to help all New Yorkers become more familiar with the risks for and warning signs of depression and suicide. Making educational materials available in various languages is an important step in expanding our suicide prevention efforts. When members of a community know how to recognize signs of depression and stress and to get help for their friends and family members, lives will be saved. ”

“Recognizing and addressing the signs of depression in children, adolescents and adults is significant to the overall good health and mental health of individuals and families throughout New York’s diverse communities,” said Gail A. Magaliff, Chief Executive Officer of F.E.G.S. Health and Human Services System. “F.E.G.S. is proud to host the kick-off of OMH’s Russian language version of the SPEAK campaign. The F.E.G.S. Brooklyn Resource Center serves thousands of Russian speaking individuals each year, and this initiative will provide vital information for the members of this community.”

SPEAK is designed to give New Yorkers the information they need in order to help themselves, their friends, loved ones, neighbors and others. Informational kits include the most current scientific knowledge available about depression and suicide, suicide prevention, risk factors, warning signs, and resources about how to seek help for yourself and others. SPEAK kits also include population-specific information about suicide and depression in men, women, older adults, college-aged adults and teens.

SPEAK is part of New York’s State’s larger ongoing suicide prevention initiative: after its 2005 release of a comprehensive, data-driven report on suicide, its risks and prevention, OMH convened New York’s first State Summit on Suicide Prevention, designed to help communities develop capacity and plans to reduce the incidence of suicide across New York. Since then, the agency has funded a number of projects including regional conferences across the State, initiatives designed to enhance peoples’ recognition of depression, clinician training and educational initiatives created specifically for middle and high school students and faculty. In addition, the New York State Bridge Authority has installed suicide hot line phones on four of its Hudson Valley Bridges, and the Thruway Authority has activated suicide prevention telephones on the Tappan Zee Bridge.

“Treatment is effective and with it, lives can be saved,” said Commissioner Hogan. “I encourage all New Yorkers to become familiar with the risks and warning signs of depression and suicide. Speak up if you are troubled, and listen closely to loved ones who speak to you when they are in pain. By learning when, where and how to speak up and seek help for oneself or others, we can saves lives in New York State.

Since the SPEAK campaign began in 2004, more than 40,000 kits have been distributed across New York, to other states and to other nations. The information contained in the kits is also available for download from the OMH website at www.omh.state.ny.us. The campaign has been featured in regional and national publications including Governing Magazine, Mental Health Weekly and Behavioral Healthcare Tomorrow.

For additional copies of the SPEAK kit, write or call the Office of Mental Health Community Outreach and Public Education Office, 44 Holland Avenue, Albany, NY 12229, or call (toll free) 866-270-9857. All of the information in the kit is also available online at the OMH website, www.omh.state.ny.us

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