Slated for Tuesday, April 22 through Saturday, April 26, 2003 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the annual conference will bring together hundreds of researchers, clinicians, suicide prevention specialists plus "survivors of suicide" - those who have endured the suicide of a loved one.
Conference attendees from across the U.S. and more than a dozen other countries will come together to collaborate on how to reduce suicide rates among diverse populations. These include teens and college students, the elderly, minority groups, substance abusers, those with gambling addictions, police and emergency workers, mothers grappling with postpartum depression and others.
With five days of symposia, papers, poster and workshop sessions, the 36th Annual AAS Conference will feature the following prominent themes:
1) Suicide among adolescents and college-age young adults
Today suicide is the third leading cause of death in the 15-24 age group. To address this major health risk for young people, the AAS Conference will feature a host of sessions pertinent to suicide prevention in youth and young adults. Topics will include resiliency as a protective mechanism for suicide; impulsivity and risk behaviors as indicators of suicide potential; barriers to treatment of suicidal individuals; impact of the World Trade Center attack on teens' mental health; suicide risk behaviors among high-achievers; youth suicide among minority populations including African-American, Hispanic, and Native American; victimization and suicidal ideation; the effects of parent suicide on children over time and generations; and prevention coalitions including school/university and community-based.
Conference content will address recent news coverage relating to:
- teens and young adults as the new "Generation Stress"
- the crisis of untreated depression among teens
- self-destructive behaviors including self-mutilation
- addiction and mental illness
- psychiatric drugs prescribed to children and teens
- suicide among incarcerated youth
2) Suicide and the "Graying of America"
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the number of elderly people over age 65 could rise from 34.6 million today to 82 million by the year 2050. This trend will be most evident between 2011 and 2030 when census experts predict that the number of senior citizens will soar from 13 percent to 20 percent of the population.
The population with the highest rate of completed suicides are people age 65 and over. To address how to curb suicide among this most at-risk group, the AAS Conference will feature sessions pertinent to aging populations. These include: Physical Illness and Suicide Risk of the Elderly; Exploring Personal Vulnerability to Late-Life Suicidal Ideation; and Vascular Risk Factors and Late-Life Suicides.
3) Suicide and male resistance to help seeking
Women are three times more prone to attempt suicide, yet men who attempt are far more likely to complete suicide. There are a host of reasons for this including resistance of males to seeking professional help when they need it most.
To address male-related issues and their impact on potential for suicide, the AAS Conference will feature these and other sessions pertinent to suicide among male populations: Male Help-Seeking and Suicide Prevention; and Third Party Caller Programs for High-Risk Men.
In addition, three special conference programs will address suicide prevention among those in uniform: Post-Traumatic Stress and Suicide Ideation: The Police Connection; Suicide in Uniform: Emergency Service and Military Perspectives on Suicide; and The United States Air Force Managing Suicidal Behavior Project: Enhancing Care for Suicidal Patients in a Large Health Care System. While uniformed personnel can be either male or female, research shows that the vast majority of those who complete suicide are males. These programs are particularly timely in light of the current potential for military action in the Middle East; and in addressing the impact of recent terrorist incidents on emergency service and military personnel.
ADDITIONAL CONFERENCE PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS
Additional conference programming topics include:
- Occupational stressors, depression, suicide and the workplace "burnout syndrome"
- Addictions including alcohol dependence, substance abuse, and gambling, and their influence on suicide
- The dangers of unsupervised withdrawal from GHB (a "date rape drug") which can lead to suicide
- Stressors and suicide in agricultural workers
- Perinatal mood disorders and postpartum parent support to stave off suicide
OTHER CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS
- U.S. Senator Pete Domenici, NM, will receive an AAS Special Award for Public Policy Leadership on Saturday, April 26. Senator Domenici will also deliver a joint plenary address along with Victor LaCerva, M.D., author of the book, Pathways to Peace. The address, "Let Peace Begin with Me," will focus on resiliency, personal healing and suicide prevention. The award and address are slated for Saturday, April 26 at 8:45 a.m. at the La Fonda Hotel, located at 100 East San Francisco Street.
- A special one-day overlapping program for "survivors of suicide," that is, those who are grappling with the suicide of a loved one, will also be held in conjunction with the AAS Conference. Slated for Saturday, April 26, this 15th Annual AAS Healing After Suicide Conference will be themed "Exploring Avenues of Hope" and will include special display of "Faces of Suicide" Quilts, a national textile arts project to demystify and destigmatize suicide. The Healing After Suicide Conference will take place from 8:15 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the La Fonda Hotel.
- AAS will collaborate with two other suicide prevention organizations, CONTACT USA and the Kristin Brooks Hope Center, to sponsor the First Collaborative Crisis Centers Conference. This distinct program geared to crisis center workers will be held April 22-26 in conjunction with the 36th Annual AAS Conference.
LOGISTICS
Please note the following timing for conference-related programming:
- Major conference symposia, papers and poster sessions: Thu., April 24 - Sat. a.m., April 26
- Media breakfast briefing: Thu., April 24 from 7-8 a.m. in the press room
- Pre-conference workshops: Wed., April 23
- First Collaborative Crisis Centers Conference: Tue., April 22 - Sat., April 26
- Healing After Suicide Conference for survivors: Sat., April 26
To assist journalists in covering the conference, an open media briefing is scheduled for Thursday, April 24 from 7-8 a.m. in the press room (Board Room at La Fonda Hotel). A buffet breakfast will be served, and AAS leadership will be on hand to discuss with journalists important and potentially newsworthy presentations to take place during the conference.
Regarding lodging, the deadline for requesting housing at the special convention rates is March 31, 2003. Visit AAS online at www.suicidology.org for additional conference information including programming, presenters and content.
All journalists must be credentialed in the press room (the Board Room on the lobby level of the La Fonda Hotel) to gain access to conference sessions and presentations. If you have credentials as a media representative, conference registration is free. To obtain the proper registration form (as well as the form to obtain housing at convention rates), please contact AAS staff by phone at 202-237-2280 or fax at 202-237-2282. Also, the press room will be open for on-site media registration beginning on Wednesday, April 23 from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. During each day of the conference, the press room hours will be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Conference papers will be available, as will working space and AAS staff resources. The press room will also be the site of any news briefings held during the conference.
News releases providing details on important presentations to be made during the conference will be available in the press room, plus other materials providing background information on the meeting and the American Association of Suicidology.
The American Association of Suicidology (AAS), based in Washington, DC, is the oldest and largest scientific and professional organization in the world representing the field of suicide prevention and suicidology (the study of suicide). Founded in 1968, AAS works to advance an understanding of suicide, its causes and its prevention, through researching and implementing strategies for reducing risk of suicide among all populations. The organization publishes the oldest peer-reviewed journal in suicidology, "Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior." AAS has a diverse membership base that includes researchers, clinicians, educators, public health specialists, crisis workers, students, and "survivors of suicide," that is, those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Through its five divisions, AAS works to forge public and private partnerships that will increase the focus on suicide as a public health issue and best practices in suicide prevention. Fore more information about AAS, its membership, mission and the 36th Annual Conference of the American Association of Suicidology, visit www.suicidology.org.