Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine Holds Suicide Prevention Training

The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine (CCOM) provided a suicide prevention training on the Downers Grove Campus to prepare the medical students to recognize signs that someone is suicidal and step in to save a life. Six second-year CCOM students: Umar Aftab (CCOM ’27), Kathryn Pfeiffer (CCOM ’27), Kaylee Stowe (CCOM ’27), Susan Westman (CCOM ’27), Kelly McGowen (CCOM ’27), and Anya Athan (CCOM ’27) underwent professional training through the QPR Institute, a national program for suicide prevention. Following their training, the future doctors shared their newly acquired knowledge with about 100 first-year medical students to educate them to identify signs and commentary that someone is considering suicide, ask the appropriate questions, listen to the issue without judgment, and assist them with the appropriate resources. 

“With the approval and support of Thomas Boyle, D.O., Dean, CCOM, and the CCOM's Dean's office, the CCOM Wellness Committee obtained funding to train six amazing students interested in psychiatry and mental health about suicide prevention. This certification allowed them to provide peer-to-peer training in suicide prevention for the OMS1 class and additional healthcare professionals during their medical journey. This is an important step in reducing the stigma associated with mental illness,” said Kyle Henderson, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Physiology, College of Graduate Studies-Downers Grove (CGS.)

“Teaching people how to create connections and foster hope can be done within an hour session, and trainees leave with simple, specific tools they can use to ask the question, persuade the person to seek help, and refer them to a professional,” said medical student Kaylee Stowe (CCOM ’27).

“With a recent focus on mental health, it is very important to look at our own community of healthcare professionals and see and acknowledge that it is a problem. In this session, we give future physicians and healthcare workers the tools they need if they ever do experience it. This is a very important stepping stone to combatting this issue,” discussed medical student Arushi Chauhan (CCOM ’27). Arushi organized the session with medical student Marisa Adelman (CCOM ’27), who added, “Having this training and opening up that conversation helps reduce the stigma of suicide.”

In addition, the mentorship among first and second-year medical student peers eased the conversation about a difficult subject to make the training more effective. Arushi said, “It strengthens and builds the support network and comfortability and vulnerability to bring a personal touch to the training.” 

The medical student trainers shared statistics specific to medical professionals from the QPR Institute. Over 10 percent of medical students think seriously about committing suicide while pursuing their studies. In addition, doctors lost their lives to suicide at a rate of four times higher in comparison to people in other professions. About 300-400 doctors die from suicide yearly, according to the American College of Emergency Physicians, a nonprofit medical association comprised of emergency medicine doctors, residents, and medical students. 

Arushi and Marissa reflected upon how this information impacted them last year when they received the training as first-year medical students. “It’s a bit shocking. I’m well aware of its prevalence worldwide no matter the occupation, but this hits closer to home. These are my colleagues, peers, and classmates. It makes it more important that I help them through it if I can,” Arushi said. Marissa concurred, “It's a heavy feeling, and it makes me think about the people in my life and want to check in with them, especially my fellow classmates.” 

The medical student trainers highlighted some myths about suicide, such as it being inevitable, that suicide is only prevented through experts, and if people talk about it, then they are not going to commit suicide. They also described the facts to contradict the myths, such as the appropriate help and resources could prevent someone from being suicidal another time in the future, everyone can assist in suicide prevention, and that people who mention suicide talk about it in the week before a suicide attempt.

Kaylee acknowledged that it can be uncomfortable to bring up the subject in a conversation, but she stressed the importance of overcoming these feelings. “If we cannot ask if someone is considering suicide, then we cannot intervene and prevent it,” she said.

Arushi shared that if students are stressed, anxious, and uncomfortable about the topic, then they should take it as a reason to undergo the training to face their initial emotional response and be equipped to deal with the situation should it arise. 

The medical student trainers emphasized not to take it lightly if someone is joking about suicide. The scenario should follow with appropriate questions and referring the person to the necessary resources. Sometimes, people directly express a wish to die, or indirectly hint at it using phrases that indicate they cannot go on. The medical student trainers stressed the importance of taking all the potential signs of a suicide risk seriously. They also went over behaviors that signal a person is considering suicide, such as obtaining a gun or piling medication, giving valued possessions away, and becoming interested in religion or turning away from it. Certain situations could contribute to suicidal intentions, such as losing a job, expulsion from higher education, the end of a relationship, or the death of someone close to a person, especially if the death resulted from suicide. 

The medical student trainers highlighted the ways to ask a person if they are experiencing suicidal thoughts or are planning to die via suicide. They advised the attending students to ask questions in any case, as it can save someone’s life. If they are not close enough to the person, or do not feel comfortable asking, then they should find someone to ask the question. They also covered direct ways of asking, indirect approaches, and having resources ready and available. The medical student trainers also described the importance of listening and following up with the person. 

Arushi added, “This training gives you the tools. If you ever find yourself in that situation with someone, then you’re able to help.”

The session included groups of role-playing. Marissa discussed that role-playing helps students ask difficult questions with the knowledge that asking will not push someone to commit suicide. Instead, the questions help anyone struggling to confide and receive professional help. “The training helps us build the culture of support in the medical community that we can carry forward,” Marissa reflected. 

Kaylee emphasized the importance of the training and applying the skills they learned to anyone in need of help and said, “By doing this simple training, we have given 100 students the tools they need to positively influence countless lives.”