This note was translated into Spanish and edited for clarity from a version in English.
Nevada joined the rest of the nation on Saturday in adopting 988 as the reference number for people considering suicide — a change that experts say will make it easier for people to get help during a mental health crisis and they acknowledge this is equally important for physical health.
The number will replace the current 10-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which is 800-273-8255. During and after the transition, calls to 988 will automatically be directed to the original number.
“Turning it to a three-digit number at the 911 level shows the importance of paying attention,” said Misty Vaughn Allen, coordinator for the Nevada Office of Suicide Prevention.
The three-digit number also acknowledges the level of crisis someone may be experiencing when considering suicide.
“For the most part, people don’t want to die,” Allen explained. “They are overwhelmed, feeling like a burden. And sometimes when all that stress is going on, you can’t think of the person you go to for help.”
A person who contacts the suicide prevention hotline will be directed to a mental health professional, who will discuss the situation and suggest that the caller seek outside activities to calm down, such as playing video games or going for a walk.
The operator will make sure the person has access to any medication they are taking, and will also ask questions about any possible lethal means they may have on hand.
“Eighty percent of those who call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline, soon to be 988, can reduce stress just by being heard,” Allen said. “In the rare event that a person is unable to de-stress them, the hotline worker…will connect them to mobile crisis services, to a health care provider.”
The person will then receive a follow-up call from the hotline or a community resource 24 to 72 hours after the initial call, to check if they still feel safe. Western Nevada Warmline and Nevada Caring Contacts also provide an option for someone who wants to get multiple scheduled follow-up calls.
Dr. Sheldon Jacobs, a marriage and family counselor as well as a board member of both Hope Means Nevada, an organization that works to decrease youth suicide, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, explained that the promise of Confidentiality could help someone hesitant to make that call.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among young people and kills more people each year than car accidents. Currently more individuals die by suicide than by homicide and AIDS combined.
In 2005, Nevada had the third highest suicide death rate of the 50 states. Since then, the entity has worked to reduce suicide rates by investing in programs such as the Nevada Resilience Project y Nevada Zero Suicide.
As of 2020, Nevada ranks 15th in the nation for suicide mortality. In 2021, suicide rates were lower than the previous year at almost one case of death or self-harm per 100,000 population, according to America’s Health Rankings.
According to Allen, the lower suicide rates in 2020 and 2021 may actually be due to the pandemic. As everyone experienced a stressful and transformative event, more people reached out to each other.
Some signs to watch out for are major changes in behavior. If someone is normally happy and suddenly becomes very sad or cynical, that’s a bad sign.
Allen encourages people to be willing to sit down with someone who is dealing with suicidal thoughts or any type of mental health crisis when they contact the 24/7 Suicide Prevention Hotline — which, even before the transition to 988 — it had text messaging and online chat options in multiple languages.
Crisis Support Services Executive Director Rachelle Pellissier said calls to 988 will be directed to local mental health centers staffed by crisis reduction professionals and volunteers, all of whom must undergo intensive 75-hour training before start work in the call center.
The staff includes some bilingual operators to help Spanish speakers by phone, text, or chat. The hotline also hires translators in various languages.
The US Department of Health and Human Services announced in April that Nevada will receive $1 million of federal funds to support the hotline. Allen said Nevada’s 50 years of suicide prevention have prepared the state to implement the bill.
“If we continue to build caring communities to recognize when those people are struggling and help connect them to services, I think that’s a really wonderful way to do this,” Allen concluded.