New York is launching a four-year, $1.6 million suicide prevention initiative in five rural counties, including Wayne and Yates, where combined suicide rates have exceeded the statewide rate. The state Office of Mental Health announced the program Thursday.
The Rural Outreach, Organizing, Training and Suicide Prevention initiative, known as ROOTS-NY, also covers Broome, Genesee and Orleans counties. The office said the program will build on existing community resources, train local workers and strengthen partnerships among health care systems, community groups and local leaders. The announcement did not specify how the $1.6 million will be divided among the five counties.
Why the five counties were selected
From 2022 through 2024, the five participating counties had a combined suicide rate of 12.23 deaths per 100,000 residents, compared with 8.77 statewide, according to the Office of Mental Health. Among residents older than 20, the counties' combined rate was 15.35 per 100,000, compared with 10.85 statewide for that age group. Those are combined figures for the five counties, not individual rates for Wayne or Yates.
About half of suicide deaths in the participating counties involved a firearm, compared with 29% statewide, the office said. The agency identified safer access to lethal means as one possible focus of the prevention work. It also cited economic hardship, housing instability, social isolation and limited access to mental health care among challenges that can affect rural communities; the release did not measure the contribution of each factor to deaths in the five counties.
Office of Mental Health Commissioner Ann Sullivan said the initiative is intended to reduce isolation and barriers to care. Jay Carruthers, director of the Suicide Prevention Center of New York State, said it will build on people and organizations already working in rural communities rather than rely on a single statewide approach.
Other rural prevention efforts
The announcement followed a two-day rural suicide prevention conference held in Ithaca last week by the Suicide Prevention Center, which is part of the state mental health office. The agency said the gathering drew roughly 350 participants from across New York and featured nearly two dozen speakers discussing ways to address higher rural suicide rates.
ROOTS-NY joins several other state efforts, but those awards cover different programs and locations. Over the summer, the office awarded $660,000 to help community organizations establish clinical, school and community supports in Cayuga, Chautauqua, Madison, Putnam and Tioga counties. The release did not identify the organizations or specify a Cayuga County share of that total.
Last year, the office awarded $2 million to AIM Independent Living Center for Farmers Supporting Farmers, a peer-driven behavioral health program for farmers, agribusiness workers and their families. Although statewide, that effort focuses on 11 rural counties, including Chemung, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Schuyler, Steuben, Wayne and Yates. The Office of Mental Health also released a five-year suicide prevention roadmap in September, with statewide goals, a task force report on disparities and an action plan.
People experiencing emotional distress or worried about someone who may need crisis support can call, text or chat 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at any hour.
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