Native American Youth and Suicide

<p>Native Americans, including adolescents and youth, have consistently had the highest rates of death by suicide from among all other racial and ethnic groups in America. The need for effective action to save young lives and reverse these trends has never been more dire.</p><p>SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program at the American Nurses Association alumna, Dr. Beverly Patchell, an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, joins Mental Health Trailblazers, Psychiatric Nurses Speak Up! host Indrias Kassaye, to discuss the unique factors and circumstances that have contributed to high suicide rates among Native American Youth and what behavioral health professionals including psychiatric mental health nurses can do about it.</p><p>Together, Dr. Patchell and Indrias dive into the historical and cultural context that underpins present day behavioral health challenges that Native American adolescents and young adults face. Dr. Patchell leverages her long career as a nurse scientist, researcher, therapist, and clinician, her experiences as a mother and grandmother, as well as her intimate knowledge of indigenous culture and medicine and keen observation of the impact of contemporary factors including social media on youth behavior, to make the case for a major rethink of how the provision of behavioral health services to Native American communities is supported and delivered.</p><p>If recent calls for action on the youth mental health crisis gripping America that have put the spotlight on major increases in depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation in recent years are to have an impact for Native American youth, it cannot be business as usual.</p><p>Learn more about Dr. Beverly Patchell at <a href="https://emfp.org/mfp-fellows/beverly-patchell" target="_blank">https://emfp.org/mfp-fellows/beverly-patchell</a></p><p>More information on Native American Youth at risk of suicide, including resources to help are available at</p><p><a href="https://www.cnay.org/suicide-prevention/" target="_blank">https://www.cnay.org