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These are recent articles about our organization or about legislation on suicide. Please click on the links below to view the news webpage.
READER’S DIGEST HONORS CAPE CORAL RESIDENT AS RECIPIENT Virginia Cervasio, Executive Director for C.A.R.E.S. Suicide Prevention, has been named as a recipient for Reader’s Digest “Make It Matter” initiative. Every month for ten months, Reader’s Digest will choose one individual whose story of giving back serves as an inspiration to others. For each story, the Reader’s Digest Foundation will donate $100,000. In her name, AFSP, The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, was awarded the grant. View Reader’s Digest Story:
Virginia Cervasio holds the ribbon after it was cut during a grand opening Thursday evening of the Suicide Prevention Resource Center in Cape Coral, FL. Cervasio started an organization for people who have lost a loved one to suicide after her son Angelo Cervasio, 24, killed himself in January 2006.
Cape Coral's first suicide resource center to open next month! June 6, 2008 (Click to view the article)
Government State of Florida
Army holds suicide-prevention poster contest
By
Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Aug 20, 2007 10:32:00 EDT The Army is inviting its young enlisted soldiers to design a poster about preventing suicide. The contest is part of a broader effort by the Army to lower an alarming suicide rate among soldiers from age 21 to 30.
Last year, 99 soldiers committed suicide, and two more deaths under investigation could raise the number to 101, according to the Army Suicide Event Report released Aug. 16. That is the highest number in 26 years.
About a third of those soldiers took their own lives in Iraq or Afghanistan. Most killed themselves with a firearm.
Of the suicide victims in 2006, 10 were women. In 2005, four women killed themselves, the Army said.
Now the Army is inviting all soldiers in the ranks of E-1 to E-4 to enter the suicide-prevention poster contest.
The contest is sponsored by the Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, and the contest rules are on the CHPPM Web site at http://chppm-www.apgea.army.mil/dhpw/Readiness/suicide.aspx.
The original artwork may be done individually or in teams of no more than five members. The winning poster will be distributed throughout the Army and will be published along with other Army suicide prevention posters, on the Army’s Web site.
According to the rules, the posters must be original and may not use any copyrighted material. The rules suggest that posters be creative, attractive and include a “dynamic message” that would speak to young soldiers.
The poster designs could be a general message of suicide awareness or present a specific issue that may be related to suicide, such as the ideas of getting help, or overcoming the fear of being stigmatized or admitting depression.
The poster may also focus on the need for soldiers to be a buddy and take the initiative to help another soldier in trouble.
Winners may be asked for additional materials including a high-resolution JPG image of the poster. Winners who create computer-generated posters will be asked to provide the Army with all poster files because all submissions become the property of CHPPM, which reserves the right to alter designs.
Artists or teams may not submit multiple posters.
Submissions are due Sept. 30, and the winner or winners will receive a coin from the sergeant major of the Army, presented at their unit by Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth Preston.
Government State of Florida
On June 21, 2007, the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee passed the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education funding bill (S. 1710) for Fiscal Year 2008. The bill marked two milestones for suicide prevention funding. One regarding dollars allocated for grants under the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (GLSMA) and one with respect to the importance of research. The report accompanying S. 1710 provides $30 million for grants to States and tribes to develop youth suicide prevention and early intervention programs, which is approximately $12.18 million above last year's level and the administration request. In addition, the Committee provides $5 million for campus-based programs that address youth suicide prevention. The Committee also provides $5 million for the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. In addition, the report for S. 1710 includes language that encourages the National Institute of Mental Health to increase its investment in suicide prevention research by supporting advanced centers for this purpose and creating new developing centers. Action on these two items matches the requests made by SPAN USA as articulated in our current set of public policy priorities. Of course, this achievement would not be possible without the outstanding efforts of SPAN USA's network of advocates. When we asked for calls to encourage senators to sign a letter requesting at least $40M for GLSMA grants, you responded and 26 senators signed the letter. Now the result is evident-the Committee provided the $40 million we requested. Passage by the Senate Appropriations Committee is just one step in the process, but a very important one. The full U.S. House passed its version of a bill providing funding for health programs on July 19. The House bill, H.R. 3043 does not provide for increased funding for the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act and does not include NIMH language in as strong of terms as the Senate bill. SPAN USA will provide updated information as it becomes available. Once the Senate passes S. 1710, we will provide an opportunity for suicide prevention advocates to contact their members of Congress and urge them to support the language in the Senate bill. Newsweek - July 16, 2007 Trouble in a 'Black
Box'
Lorraine can't know for certain whether Prozac saved Michael's life, although she's convinced it did. These days, however, fewer parents or doctors are following her lead. According to a new study in The Journal of American Psychiatry, the number of SSRI prescriptions for pediatric depression (ages 5 to 18) tumbled more than 50 percent between 2003 and 2005. In a troubling parallel development, the number of teen suicides jumped a record 18 percent between 2003 and 2004, the most recent year for which data exist. Are the two trends connected? Many experts say yes. "All the data point in one direction: antidepressants save lives and untreated depression kills people," says Dr. Kelly Posner, a Columbia University child psychiatrist. She and others cite an unwitting instigator: the Food and Drug Administration—which may have scared parents and doctors away from SSRIs in 2003 when it issued a health-advisory warning of a potential link between the popular drugs and teen suicide. The agency, assisted at the time by Posner, followed up in 2004 with a "black box" warning of an "increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior among children and adolescents." Now, amid fears that it's done more harm than good, there are calls for the FDA to modify and even repeal its black box. "I think the FDA has made a very serious mistake. It should lift its black-box warning because all it's doing is killing kids," says Dr. Robert Gibbons, of the University of Illinois's Center for Health Statistics. (Gibbons was a dissenting member of the FDA advisory committee that voted for the black box.) Others agree, including Dr. John Mann, a suicide expert at Columbia University, who fought the warning on the ground that it would have a chilling effect on treatment. "Short of rescinding, the FDA should shift its balance to reflect new wisdom about the beneficial effects of antidepressants," he says. Drugmakers continue to support the FDA but also suspect its actions have had a dangerous impact. These new attacks are in contrast to the praise the FDA elicited with its move for more-stringent labeling, which followed searing public testimony from parents whose children killed themselves while taking SSRIs. The pendulum has since swung back. "If I had known how much the label would rattle parents, I wouldn't have voted for it," says Gail Griffith, who was the patient representative on the panel. Today, few doubt the FDA's good intentions, or its conclusion that teens taking the drugs should be closely monitored. Psychiatrists have long thought that treatment can put people at a temporary risk of suicide, but untreated depression is considered the far more lethal course. "You may induce two suicides by treatment, but by stopping treatment you're going to lose dozens to hundreds of kids. You're losing more than you're saving. That's the calculus," says Dr. Robert Valuck, of the University of Colorado Heath Sciences Center, coauthor of the new paper. (The research, partly funded by Prozac maker Eli Lilly, passed a peer review for bias.) The FDA has already taken steps to modify the box in reaction to reports that its message was being misunderstood. "Our goal was to inform people of a risk, not halt treatment," says Dr. Thomas Laughren, head of psychiatry products, the division responsible for the warning. "But it's still only one year of data," he cautions. In May, his office mandated revisions "to reflect the apparent beneficial effect of antidepressants" and remind people that mood disorders are "the most important cause" of suicide. The next test for the FDA will come this December, when the CDC releases suicide figures for 2005. "If the rates are up again, it's likely we'll go back to the board of advisers," says Laughren. The agency has repealed only one black box in its history, on the acid-reflux medication Prilosec, pulled in 2003. "But I wouldn't rule it out," Laughren adds. "The evidence is very compelling." June 27, 2007 Update on the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act SPAN USA is pleased to let you know that today, June 27th, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved by voice vote the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act (S 479). The bill directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop and implement a comprehensive program to reduce the incidence of suicide among veterans, would make available 24-hour mental health care for veterans found to be at risk, and would develop an outreach and education program for veterans and their families to recognize readjustment problems and promote mental health. The House version of the legislation, H.R. 327, passed the full House on March 21st. It is unclear when the full Senate will take up S. 479. Currently, there are 29 cosponsor of the bill sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA). To encourage your Senators to cosponsor the bill, or thank them for already doing so, click here. Passage of this important legislation by the Senate VA Committee proves that advocacy in action works! Brian Altman, J.D. Director of Public Policy and Program Development Suicide Prevention Action Network USA
May 22, 2007 House Bill 139 – Statewide Office for Suicide Prevention Update HB 139 created a Statewide Office for Suicide Prevention and a position of statewide coordinator contingent upon specific appropriation. The law also created a Suicide Prevention Coordinating Council within Statewide Office for Suicide Prevention and appropriated $150,000. The bill’s lead sponsor was State Rep. Hugh Gibson. The bill passed the House (Y-114; N-0) on 03/29/2007; the Senate (Y-38; N-0) on 4/27/07; and was approved by Governor on 05/22/07. It is now Chapter 2007-46. Secretary Bob Butterworth today announced that
Director Bill Janes, of News-Press Fort Myers, Florida Saturday, April 7, 2007
Family to
walk for suicide prevention
A Cape Coral mother, whose son killed himself last year, will lead a
team on a suicide prevention walk in New York City. "My son and I spoke about it, and he said, 'Let's do it,'" Virginia
Cervasio said of the walk. Joe is designing a T-shirt in Angelo's memory that the team will wear
during the New York walk. He also will have at least 50 more made for
friends and family who want to wear or display it. "I seem to be the only one who doesn't understand how long of a walk
it is," he said. "I'll walk 50 or 100 miles for a cause like this.
Twenty miles is nothing. It's like walking down the block for me." To take part in the walk, each person must raise at least $1,000. "I asked him for a small donation," Joe said of the Darren Jenne, a
partner in nearby Creighton & Jenne Development. "He said he would be
honored to take care of everything." "We go into their restaurant several times a week," Jenne said. "We
were taken aback by their concern for others, and how dedicated they are
to prevent people from being in the situation they're in." Walking with Virginia and Joe are her brother Matteo Gaudio, 42, of
Glen Cove, N.Y.; her sister Maria Barbato, 44, and best friend DeeDee
Flippone, 51, both of Huntington Station, N.Y.; and Angelo Cervasio's
best friend, Eric Puleio, 25, of Manhattan. "That is definitely five too many," Virginia said. "We are here to take the stigma out of suicide and make the community aware that it does exist. Other people should not have to go through what we have gone through." News-Press September 24, 2006 "Former Soldier Honored in Death"
News-Press November 19, 2006
News-Press May 21, 2006 "A Mom Turns Her Distress into Effort to Prevent Suicides"
News-Press September 26, 2006 "Group Rides More Fun When They Are Tied to a Cause"
News-Press May 21, 2006
Cape Coral Daily Breeze Cape Coral, Florida Monday, May 07, 2007 CARES provides support, suicide awareness information, to teens By JESSICA COSDEN, jcosden@breezenewspapers.com
Last year, 41 people committed suicide in
Fort Myers and 41 families grieved over the loss of a loved one by his
or her own hands.
June 22, 2007 A new psychiatric hospital is being planned for Lee County, and the first step will put 15 beds in Lee Memorial Hospital. Lee Memorial Health System's board of directors finance committee approved leasing the space for 15 beds to Reliant Healthcare, a Birmingham, Ala.-based psychiatric hospital developer. "There's an obvious need in Fort Myers," said Jim Harper, Reliant president. "When the Charter facility closed in 2000, it had patients until the day it closed." The 144-bed Charter Glade psychiatric hospital closed in June 2000. It was the only full-service psychiatric hospital in Lee County. The 15-bed unit at Lee Memorial is a first step in building a full-scale psychiatric hospital in Fort Myers, Harper said. To apply for a certificate of need for a new psychiatric hospital, he said, the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration requires "proof of utilization," or the current use of some type of center to treat psychiatric patients before a hospital can be built. "Without any utilization, it's very easy for them to say there's no need," Harper said. With a population of 560,000, Lee County has 30 psychiatric beds, said Michael McNally, vice president of community relations for Lee Mental Health. National estimates say there should be about 30 beds per 100,000 people. That means Lee County should have more than 165 psychiatric beds. Reliant and Lee Memorial partnering on the small unit will allow for the treatment of patients to start sooner rather than waiting for a full-scale hospital to be built, said Jan Eustis, former CEO of Lee Mental Health and a current mental health consultant. The psychiatric hospital would have about 60 beds and would open in late 2009 or early 2010 if approved. There would be specialized units for adults, the elderly and possibly adolescents, said Karen Krieger, Lee Memorial spokeswoman. The 15-bed unit will be for adults older than 21. "We know adults and the elderly need to be served first," Harper said. The leasing option still must be approved by the full board at its June 28 meeting, she said. The 15-bed unit will be ready for licensing by Sept. 30 so that it can lock in 2008 Medicare rates, Harper said. The unit will open to patients as soon as the licensing is complete, but Harper said he didn't know how long that would take. Reliant doesn't have any other centers in Florida, and he said every state's licensing process is different. Charter Glade closed amid financial difficulties, but Harper said Medicare reimbursement rates for psychiatric hospitals changed in 2005. He said he doesn't think funding will be an issue. Eustis said the in-patient center is needed. "A psychiatric hospital is really going to do more long-term treatment," she said. Guy Esposito, 65, of Fort Myers, who has dealt with mental illness for 20 years, said it sounds like a good plan. "Some of the clients I see walk around the streets.... They just wander around," he said. "That would be good for them, at Lee Memorial, 15 beds for adult psychiatric clients." Lee Mental Health's Ruth Cooper Center is designed for crisis stabilization of mental health problems. That means it cannot treat people with severe physical needs along with psychiatric needs. McNally said the county has nothing that can treat patients with both physical and psychiatric needs. Older patients' medical needs are especially difficult to treat, he said. The new hospital should also help Ruth Cooper by decreasing its caseload. When Charter Glade was open, McNally said, Ruth Cooper had about 60 to 80 admissions a month. In recent months, those numbers have topped 200. Reliant's chairman, Don Page, wanted to build a psychiatric hospital in Lee County with his former company but lost to Charter Glade. "This is now like his second chance," Harper said. "This is the establishment of a relationship that is intended to be in perpetuity. We intend to be here in the long haul."
Bonita Daily News Bonita Springs, Florida Friday, June 9, 2006 "Out of tragedy, a new hope against suicide." http://www.bonitanews.com/news/2006/jun/09/out_tragedy_new_hope_against_suicide/
Friday, August 4, 2006 Cares Editorial http://www.bonitanews.com/news/2006/aug/24/editorial_cares/
Southwest Florida Women's Digest Cape Coral, Florida
Southwest Florida Women's Digest May 21, 2006
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