Abstract for S’puyal¿pabš Project
The Puyallup Tribe of Indians continually strives to confront the devastating issue of
suicide throughout its community. The purpose of this proposed project is to strategically address
the subject of suicide and its many complexities, building on the accomplishments of the
Methamphetamine and Suicide Prevention Initiative (MSPI) and related system building to grow
Coast Salish-specific prevention, early intervention, crisis intervention, and postvention
response. Clinical and peer staff will conduct project activities primarily at our tribal school,
Chief Leschi Schools (CLS), linked to primary care/outpatient at the tribal mental health facility
Puyallup Tribal Health Authority (PTHA) and its Kwawachee Counseling Center (KCC).
The project is grounded in the Zero Suicide framework model and related Evidence
Based Practices, e.g., SafeTalk, to be implemented primarily at CLS but is grounded in an
approach integrated through the common application of S’Puyalupubsh culture and language
across KCC, CLS, and the Tribal Community Wellness Division (TCWD). The lead entity,
KCC/PTHA has a long history of providing culturally competent care to the tribal community.
The KCC Director, Dr. Danelle Reed, is a Puyallup tribal member who is intimately familiar
with local language, concepts, attitudes, norms and values about suicide and applies that
knowledge to her prevention strategies and outreach.
Staff selected for this project will provide a therapeutic space in the school to reduce the
prevalence of suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, suicide, and general academic failure among
AI/AN adults and youth residing on and near the Puyallup Reservation. At-risk youth, primarily
individuals aged up to 24, will be identified for services based on a comprehensive screening and
assessment process. Therapeutic activities will include families and caregivers in communitybased, least restrictive settings. There are four project goals to address needs-based priorities and
gaps in services specific to our Generation Indigenous (Gen-I) youth and their families.
The first goal is to improve integrated care coordination by establishing clear policies,
procedures, protocols for collaborative Zero Suicide development with "core entities." These
include the PTHA, CLS, and TCWD Youth at Risk Program, with related wellness and
substance abuse responsiveness including Culture, Language, Traditional Healing, Children of
the River Child Advocacy Center (CRCAC) and Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court (JHWC),
and Children and Family Services. The second goal is to implement a set of coordinated Coast
Salish behavioral health care services in alignment with the "Zero Suicide Framework" and
complementary evidence-based and promising practices that build prosocial life skills, including
AILS, CAST, MI, QPR, and SafeTalk. The third goal is linking community behavioral health
care services to early Youth-at-Risk intervention strategies consistent with Gen-I best practices.
Utilizing the Zero Suicide model and outcome measures already developed, we will adapt
and enhance crisis supports for the students at CLS as well as across various tribal system
settings. As informed by ongoing planning efforts, we are confident that the ongoing needs
addressed through this project will become opportunities for success - the resources, knowledge,
and skills to conduct community outreach and provide culturally appropriate sensitive services.