Suicide Alertness for Everyone (safeTALK)

THree steps anyone can learn to help prevent suicide. 

What is safeTALK Training?    

safeTALK is a half-day alertness training that prepares anyone over the age of 15, regardless of prior experience or training, to become a suicide-alert helper. Most people with thoughts of suicide don’t truly want to die, but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive. safeTALK-trained helpers can recognize these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources, such as caregivers trained in ASIST.

Who needs to know safeTALK? 

safeTALK offers valuable skills to everyone 15 and older and requires no formal training or prior experience in suicide prevention. Because it only takes half a day to learn, safeTALK is an excellent tool for people who want to become alert to the dangers of suicide in a convenient timeframe. Although formal caregivers such as social workers and counselors employ safeTALK skills, the program is also used by students, teachers, community volunteers, first responders, military personnel, police, public and private employees, and professional athletes—among many others. By providing a universal model with adaptable components, safeTALK offers useful skills to every audience.

As a safeTALK Gatekeeper you will learn: 

safeTALK is a powerful experience. You can expect to feel challenged, empowered, and hopeful. Your safeTALK trainer will demonstrate the importance of suicide alertness and help you identify ways people invite help when they’re having thoughts of suicide. safeTALK’s steps provide a simple yet effective method to engage with people who are having thoughts of suicide and connect them with resources that can carry out a full-scale intervention. At the end of the training, you’ll have a chance to practice these skills firsthand. All in all, you can expect to leave safeTALK with practical knowledge of how to identify someone having thoughts of suicide and link them to life-saving resources.

Learning Goals and Objectives:

  • Notice and respond to situations where suicide thoughts might be present

  • Recognize that invitations for help are often overlooked

  • Move beyond the common tendency to miss, dismiss, and avoid suicide

  • Apply the TALK steps: Tell, Ask, Listen, and KeepSafe

  • Know community resources and how to connect someone with thoughts of suicide to them for further help

Training features:

  • Presentations and guidance from a LivingWorks registered trainer

  • Access to support from a local community resource person

  • Powerful audiovisual learning aids

  • The simple yet effective TALK steps: Tell, Ask, Listen, and KeepSafe

  • Hands-on skills practice and development

To schedule a safeTALK training or to request more information, please contact:  info@thespeedyfoundation.org.