A18
NEWS
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Suicide
Continued from Page A1
The problem
Suicide rates in the U.S.
have increased steadily
from 1999 to 2014 for males
and females, according to
Centers for Disease Control
statistics, with rates increas-
ing slightly since 2006.
In Oregon, the rate
increased by 28.2 percent
from 1999 to 2016, and sui-
cide has become the eighth
leading cause of death in
the state. More than six
times as many Oregonians
die by suicide annually than
by homicide.
Men are three times more
likely to die by suicide than
women, and suicide rates
generally increase with age.
The highest suicide rate for
men is found among those
over 85 years old, while the
highest rate for women is
found between 50 and 54
years old.
But suicide issues also
can be found among grade-
school aged children. The
Oregon Health Authori-
ty’s “2018 Oregon Student
Wellness Survey” provides
self-reported data on a wide
range of topics from sixth-,
eighth- and 11th-grade
students.
According to the survey,
the percentage of students
statewide who reported
experiencing a high level of
psychological distress over
the past 30 days was 8.9
for sixth-graders, 14.2 for
eighth-graders and 16.5 for
11th-graders.
The percentage of stu-
dents
statewide
who
reported feeling so sad or
hopeless almost every day
for two weeks or more over
the past 12 months that
they stopped doing some
usual activities was 22.8
for sixth-graders, 29.2 for
eighth-graders and 35.6 for
11th-graders.
When
asked
how
many seriously consid-
ered attempting suicide,
13.3 percent of sixth-grad-
ers answered yes, as did
19.9 percent of eighth-grad-
ers and 19.7 percent
of 11th-graders. When
asked how many actually
attempted suicide, the fig-
ures were 7.5 percent, 10.2
percent and 8.1 percent,
respectively.
Given the high sui-
cide rate in Oregon, DHS
Research of Portland sought
to measure Oregonians’
experiences with suicide in
a recent online survey. The
survey found that Orego-
nians were more likely than
the average American to
have had suicidal thoughts,
know someone who has had
suicidal thoughts or know
someone who has died by
suicide.
In
addition,
DHS
Research found that Ore-
gonians are more likely to
feel concern for people they
know and are more likely
to act on that concern than
most Americans. The sur-
vey also found that 93 per-
cent of Oregonians would
be likely to tell others if
they were having suicidal
thoughts compared to 73
percent of Americans.
Old approach
Mental health profes-
sionals have identified a
number of factors associ-
ated with suicide, includ-
ing mental illness and drug
MORE INFO
“Breaking the Silence” is a
statewide media collab-
oration aimed at putting
a spotlight on the public
health crisis of death by sui-
cide in Oregon and offering
our readers, listeners and
viewers resources to help if
they – or those they know
– are in crisis. Learn more at
breakingthesilenceor.com.
abuse, previous suicide
attempts, problems with
interpersonal or family rela-
tionships, recent criminal
or noncriminal legal prob-
lems, job or financial dif-
ficulties, physical health
issues, death of a family
member or friend, problems
at school and exposure to
suicidal behavior by a fam-
ily member or friend.
But according to Lind-
say, half of people who die
by suicide had seen a gen-
eral practitioner before their
death, and 30 percent saw a
mental health professional.
In the 60 days before their
death, 10 percent were seen
in a hospital emergency
department.
Victims of suicide “are
falling through the cracks
in our health care system,”
Lindsay said in a Dec. 15,
2018, presentation on Zero
Suicide. She is not alone in
that opinion.
“Suicide represents a
worst case failure in mental
health care,” said Michael
Hogan, the former State
Commissioner of Men-
tal Health for New York.
“We must work to make it
a ‘never event’ in our pro-
grams and systems of care.”
According to the Centers
for Disease Control, more
than half of people who
die by suicide do not have
a known mental health con-
dition, which likely means
they were not getting the
help or support they needed,
Lindsay said.
Suicide prevention is
a core responsibility for
behavioral health care sys-
tems, Lindsay said, but
many licensed clinicians
are not prepared — 39 per-
cent report they don’t have
the skills to engage and
assist those at risk for sui-
cide, and 44 percent report
they don’t have the training.
“Over the decades, indi-
vidual clinicians have made
heroic efforts to save lives,”
said Richard McKeon at the
Substance Abuse and Men-
tal Health Services Admin-
istration, “but systems of
care have done very little.”
New approach
“Zero Suicide is a sys-
tem-wide approach to sui-
cide prevention based on
community engagement,
in addition to improved
systems within the health
care system,” CCS Clinical
Director Thad Labhart told
the Eagle.
The initiative is based on
a national model, he said.
The Zero Suicide approach
is a priority for the National
Action Alliance for Suicide
Prevention, a goal of the
Reynolds
Guns
Continued from Page A1
Continued from Page A1
source activists” and “dis-
gruntled ranchers” to lay off
their attacks on Reynolds.
“They dismiss him as an
all-talk-no-action politico
who needs to stand down
in the ‘War on the West,’”
the editorial said. “That
perception is unfortunate
and wrongheaded. Nobody
works harder for this county
than Reynolds.”
Describing
Reynolds
as a “whirling dervish of
activity,” the Eagle cited
the numerous meetings he
attended as county judge,
from a forest counties con-
ference in Reno, Nevada,
and a wolf management
meeting in Newport to prop-
erty rights seminars in John
Day and public forums in
Monument and Fossil about
John Day River navigabil-
ity and possible federal land
grabs.
In October 2006, Reyn-
olds drafted a request to
local clergy asking for vol-
unteers to say an opening
prayer at the start of each
county court session. Con-
gress starts each session
with a prayer, so why not
the Grant County Court, he
reasoned.
Reynolds announced his
decision not to seek a third
term in February 2006, cit-
ing his own health and his
desire to spend more time
caring for his 83-year-old
mother.
He reflected on his time
on the county court after
stepping down in January
2007.
“If I had one wish, it
would be that we could
bring the county toward a
more neutralized focus,” he
said. “That doesn’t mean
we all have to agree, but
they need to understand
why things are happening
the way that they are.”
U.S. Rep. Greg Walden
read a tribute to Reynolds’
public service into the Con-
gressional Record on April
5, 2006, thanking him for
his years of dedication and
numerous contributions.
Walden noted that Reyn-
olds had led the county
through tough financial
times and oversaw essen-
tial projects, including con-
struction of a new county
health services center, a
new criminal justice cen-
their gun and place it in a
locked container or gun
room.
“That eliminates that
object from any sort of use
for personal protection,”
LeQuieu said, adding farm-
ers and ranchers keep them
in their trucks and use them
as tools.
He said the regulation is
a knee-jerk reaction.
“Someone who is moti-
vated to do harm to others
is going to find a way to fig-
ure it out,” he said.
He said it would be easy
for a person to buy cable
cutters at a hardware store
to bypass the locks.
Another part of the bill
requires gun owners to
report a lost or stolen fire-
arm within 72 hours or be
charged with a Class B
violation.
“It’s a general rule —
anyone would go to the
police to report it (a fire-
arm) missing or stolen,”
LeQuieu said. “Again, it’s
taking away the responsi-
bility from the criminal.”
He said the bill, if
passed, would “take away
liberties unjustly from the
American people under the
false guise of civil or pub-
lic safety.”
He added, “If we were
truly worried about human
life, we would focus our
efforts, our money, our
politics on things that
truly cost and damage and
destroy our young people
and members of society.”
He said, although he
disagrees with the bill, he
has respect for Gov. Kate
Brown.
“I would like to encour-
age her to reach out to
industry professionals to
give proficient and wise
council with regards to
the reality of firearms,”
he said. “... someone who
designs, builds and man-
ufactures — they under-
stand the inner workings of
them and the safety of the
operations.”
He said focusing on
issues such as drug addic-
tion, homelessness and
mental illness would make
a greater impact.
Grant County District
Attorney Jim Carpen-
ter also expressed con-
cern about the proposed
Contributed photo
Julie and Dennis Reynolds received a distinguished service
award for their longtime support of the Grant County
4-H program during the organization’s Oct. 17, 2013,
achievement night at Seneca School.
ter, a major remodel of the
county courthouse, a new
facility for the road depart-
ment and a new fairgrounds
building.
“Judge Reynolds’ real
impact has been how he
has treated his fellow man
and the heart with which he
has approached every task,”
Walden said. “Dennis has
cared deeply about the peo-
ple he has so ably served.”
Family and 4-H
The Reynolds had three
boys. Percy and his wife,
Nicole, live in Malaysia
but plan to move back to
the U.S. Beau and his wife,
Sara, and children Jack and
June live in Pendleton. Jake
lives in Long Creek.
“Hunting season was the
big gathering time for the
family,” Beau said.
Dennis and Julie were
very active in 4-H both as
children and adults. At the
county fair, they served
as fair court chaperones,
gate tenders, barn super-
intendents and horse show
announcers.
The Reynolds were 4-H
leaders for more than 40
years and were the rifle and
pistol leaders for 30 years,
hosting shooting contests
at their home south of Can-
yon City. They were given
the 4-H Distinguished Ser-
vice Award in 2014 and
the Extension Coopera-
tor Award in 2018, among
other 4-H and extension
honors.
The Reynolds also were
involved in the construc-
tion of the Heritage Build-
ing at the county fairgrounds
and led the effort to refur-
bish the Sale Barn in 2012-
13. They had only 20 days to
gather donations for the barn
and raised $30,000 in three
weeks from Grant County
residents, Julie said.
“Dad was very active in
community groups,” Beau
said. “If you threw a dart at a
board covered with commu-
nity activities, he was on that
committee.”
Julie noted, whenever
Dennis attended a commit-
tee meeting, they asked him
to join because he was so
knowledgeable.
For 16 years, Dennis
helped build theatrical scen-
ery for plays Julie put on at
Grant Union High School,
where she taught English
and drama. She retired in
2011 after 20 years at Grant
Union.
After retiring from county
government, Reynolds spent
more time at the family
ranch south of Prairie City
and restoring antique horse-
drawn carriages, including a
1909 two-seated surrey, an
1885 Victorian-era carriage
from Germany and a circa-
1919 doctor’s buggy.
“Dad cared about the
county,” Beau said. “He was
not just a resident of Canyon
City; he was a resident of the
county.”
He loved all the little cit-
ies in Grant County and
never stood for just one,
Julie said.
A celebration of life ser-
vice for Dennis Reynolds
will take place in the Her-
itage Building on Satur-
day, April 27, starting at
1 p.m. To help with the pot-
luck or for more informa-
tion, contact Julie Reynolds
at julieareynolds@century-
tel.net.
National Strategy for Sui-
cide Prevention and a proj-
ect for the Suicide Preven-
tion Resource Center.
The
Zero
Suicide
approach is a framework
for systematic, clinical sui-
cide prevention in behav-
ioral health and health
care systems, a focus on
safety and error reduction
in health care and a set of
best practices and tools
for health systems and
providers.
The core components of
the Zero Suicide approach,
according to Lindsay,
include commitment to
leadership,
standardized
screening and risk assess-
ment, establishing a suicide
care management plan,
workforce
development
and training, implementing
effective evidence-based
treatment, following up
during care transitions and
ensuring ongoing quality
improvement.
“It is critically import-
ant to design for zero even
when it may not be the-
oretically possible,” said
Thomas Priselac, pres-
ident and CEO of the
Cedars-Sinai Medical Cen-
ter in Los Angeles. “It’s
about purposefully aim-
ing for a higher level of
performance.”
“We will be implement-
ing ZS in all of our coun-
ties,” Labhart said about
CCS’s new commitment.
“While we’ve implemented
substantial internal changes
in how we identify, monitor
and treat high-risk patients,
we are really in the infancy
phase of ZS from a commu-
nity perspective.”
Zero Suicide
“Across health and
behavioral health care set-
tings, there are many oppor-
tunities to identify and pro-
vide care to those at risk of
suicide,” the Zero Suicide
website states. “Before that
can happen, suicide preven-
tion must first be seen as a
core responsibility of health
care.”
Elements
of
the
approach, according to
the Zero Suicide web-
site, include leading a sys-
tem-wide culture change
committed to reducing sui-
cides; training a competent,
confident and caring work-
force; identifying patients
with suicide risk through
comprehensive
screen-
ings; engaging all individ-
uals at risk of suicide by
using a suicide care man-
agement plan; treating sui-
cidal thoughts and behav-
iors using evidence-based
treatments;
transitioning
individuals through care
with warm hand-offs and
supportive contacts; and
improving policies and pro-
cedures through continuous
quality improvement.
The
Zero
Suicide
approach builds on suc-
cesses reported by the
Henry Ford Health System
and Centerstone, one of the
largest nonprofit commu-
nity mental health centers
in the U.S.
The Henry Ford Health
System implemented a sys-
tem focusing on suicide
care using rigorous qual-
ity improvement processes
and saw a 75 percent reduc-
tion in the suicide rate of its
health plan members. Cen-
terstone reported a reduction
in suicide deaths from 35 per
100,000 to 13 per 100,000
after implementing the Zero
Suicide approach for three
years.
Health and behavioral
health care organizations
have found that the Zero
Suicide initiative is “feasible
without additional funding,”
Lindsay said. “It’s working
— lives are being saved.”
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Dan Vandehey of Canyon City and his daughter Jaime,
10, enjoy the field test day, the culminating event for the
ODFW’s hunter education safety class.
legislation.
“Once
again, the
legislature
is focus-
ing on an
issue other
Marc
than men-
LeQuieu
tal health,”
Carpen-
ter said. “They’re saying
enforce more gun laws,
but they’re not providing
us with tools to help peo-
ple with mental illness.”
Canyon City resident
Dan Vandehey attended
a recent hunter educa-
tion live fire test day with
his 10-year old daughter,
Jaime, who was there to
complete her gun safety
certification.
Jaime said she attended
the two-week class, spon-
sored by the Oregon
Department of Fish and
Wildlife, and enjoyed
shooting a .22 and bow
and arrow during the test
day. But it was not her first
experience with firearm
safety.
“I learned about safety
from my dad,” she said.
Dan Vandehey, who has
been a Grant County Sher-
iff’s reserve deputy and
a member of the county
search and rescue team,
said, “Being a good parent
takes a lot more responsi-
bility today.”
He feels gun safety
classes should be manda-
tory and said, although he
understands the fear over
school shootings, more
thought and education
needs to go into any pro-
posed gun bill.
“This (gun legislation)
doesn’t affect the bad guys
at all,” he said.
Canyon City resident
Shiela Kowing said she
believes her gun saved
her in July 2015 when a
man tried to break into her
home.
She said, if her gun had
been locked up, she would
not have had time to get to
it to protect herself.
“When you’re in those
circumstances, emotion-
ally, you’re not think-
ing straight,” she said.
“You go into fight or flight
mode. You can’t think ‘Oh,
where’s my key.’”
Kowing, who works as
a 911 dispatcher in John
Day, said her husband and
daughter had left the home
earlier.
When she saw the man
trying the door knobs,
she grabbed the gun that
she keeps hidden and her
phone, she said.
Kowing said she feels
it’s important to raise kids
to respect the danger of
guns.
“Don’t leave them out,”
she said, adding that if
some firearms are used
only occasionally for hunt-
ing they could be locked
up.
She said they later
found out the man was
after her husband’s medi-
cations that had been pre-
scribed after a transplant
surgery.
“He had never been
caught in a home before,”
she said of the would-be
robber.
Kowing held him at
gunpoint and then he fled.
She was able to give 911 a
description of the man and
vehicle, and he was soon
caught.
The man held a metal
chain in his hand while try-
ing to break into Kowing’s
home.
“If I hadn’t had the
gun in my hand, I think I
would have been griev-
ously injured or killed,” she
said.