Do you remember how to save a life?: Longevity of gatekeeper traits gained through training programs in youth suicide gatekeepers – A systematic review

There is a classification conundrum in reporting suicide and rates are underreported. Youth suicide (aged 15 to 24) are rising partly because young people have not yet developed healthy help seeking behaviour. Youth are most at risk during times of physical, mental and/or social change. Bulletin of Suicidology defined gatekeeper as “any person to whom troubled people are turning for help” (Snyder, 1971); other de3nitions include “individuals who have a high rate of contact with people who are at high risk for suicide” (Robert & Robert, 2012). Gatekeepers can be designated, such as health, welfare and psychology professionals, or emergent, including not trained but sought by those in need like clergy and teachers. Because gatekeepers may not be confident in intervening during a crisis, training is crucial. QPR training lasts 1 to 2 hours and encourages gatekeepers to question, persuade and refer. The systematic review investigated how effective an adult gatekeeper training program is at imparting knowledge and self-efficacy to youth workers and how long the effects last.