Bill Text: HI HR99 | 2016 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Education; Statewide Suicide Prevention Program
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-03-14 - Referred to EDN, HLT, FIN, referral sheet 28 [HR99 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2016-HR99-Introduced.html
|
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
99 |
|
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2016 |
|
|
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
HOUSE RESOLUTION
Requesting the department of education to develop a statewide suicide prevention program.
WHEREAS, suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people ages ten to nineteen; and
WHEREAS, protecting the health and well-being of students is in line with school mandates and an ethical imperative for all professionals working with youth; and
WHEREAS, predicting a crisis is impossible and every school needs to be prepared; and
WHEREAS, in a typical high school, an estimated three students will attempt suicide each year; and
WHEREAS, on average one young person dies by suicide every two hours in the United States; and
WHEREAS, for every young person who dies by suicide, an estimated one hundred to two hundred youth make suicide attempts; and
WHEREAS, access to school-based mental health services and supports directly improves students’ physical and psychological safety, academic performance, cognitive performance and learning, and social–emotional development; and
WHEREAS, ninety per cent of suicides occur in people with mental disorders and the majority of people suffering from these mental disorders are not engaged in treatment; and
WHEREAS, school staff play a pivotal role in recognizing and referring the student to treatment that may reduce risk; and
WHEREAS, an urgent need exists for school districts to have policies and procedures in place to prevent, assess the risk of, intervene in, and respond to youth suicidal behavior; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2016, that the Superintendent of Education is requested to provide all staff with annual professional development on risk factors, warning signs, protective factors, response procedures, referrals, postvention, and resources regarding youth suicide prevention; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this policy is requested to be distributed annually and included in all student and teacher handbooks and on the school website; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that developmentally-appropriate, student-centered education materials are requested to be integrated into the curriculum of all K-12 health classes; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the content of these age-appropriate materials is requested to include: (1) the importance of safe and healthy choices and coping strategies; (2) how to recognize risk factors and warning signs of mental disorders and suicide in oneself and others; and (3) help-seeking strategies for oneself or others, including how to engage school resources and refer friends for help; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent of Education, the Director of Health, the President of the Hawaii Association of School Psychologists, and the President of the Hawaii State Parent Teacher Student Association.
|
|
OFFERED BY: |
_____________________________ |
Education; Statewide Suicide Prevention Program
