UW News

Forefront


July 19, 2022

Suicide prevention training for health care providers a first step in longer-term efficacy

doctor talking with patient

After Washington became the first state to require suicide prevention training for health care providers, the University of Washington worked with experts and organizations to develop the All Patients Safe program. A new study shows how All Patients Safe helped providers of all specialties learn how to identify and respond to patients at risk of suicide.


October 19, 2020

Conversation about suicide prevention leads to safe gun storage, study finds

visitors approach a booth with volunteers at a park

Research by Forefront Suicide Prevention at the University of Washington, from visits to 18 gun shows and other community events around Washington state last year, found that engaging people in a community-based setting, in an empathetic conversation focused on safety, resulted in more people locking up their firearms.


August 8, 2019

Study shows gun shops can aid in preventing suicides

Man behind the counter of a gun shop talks to a customer.

Firearm retailers throughout Washington are willing to learn about suicide prevention but are reluctant to talk to customers about mental health issues, according to a new study by Forefront Suicide Prevention at the University of Washington.


January 29, 2019

Organizations come together to show support for suicide prevention

Mock headstones outside the State Capitol mark the number of people who died by suicide in Washington in one year. Forefront Suicide Prevention, based at the University of Washington, places the headstones as part of its annual Education Day event in Olympia. Photo of hundreds of headstones on the lawn in front of the State Capitol building.

Community impact and public health solutions are the focus of the Forefront Suicide Prevention Education Day, to be held Feb. 11 at the Washington Capitol in Olympia. Forefront, based at the UW School of Social Work, is leading the event, a series of speakers and events aimed at raising awareness, providing training and pushing for change.


January 22, 2019

Forefront, UW Tacoma receive Boeing grants for veteran career services, suicide prevention

Forefront Program Coordinator Brett Bass joins fellow veterans to build awareness about the Save Homes, Suicide Aware program. Photo of Brett talking to two veterans.

Boeing has awarded $300,000 to Forefront Suicide Prevention and University of Washington Tacoma for work with veterans. Forefront, at the UW School of Social Work, received $205,000 to expand veteran-specific outreach, and UWT received $95,000 for career services for veterans.


May 18, 2018

Memorial Day events focus on veteran mental health, suicide

    For the past three years, a striking visual statement has marked Memorial Day on the University of Washington campus: thousands of miniature flags dotting the HUB lawn. The first year, student veterans placed hundreds of flags as a solemn gesture to underscore the significance of the holiday. The next year, the office of…


January 30, 2018

Depression, anxiety affect more than one-fourth of state’s college students

A study of college students from around the state shows the prevalence of depression and anxiety. Suicide prevention advocates say this illustrates the need for more mental health resources on campuses.

  Nearly one-third of Washington college students have experienced depression in the last year, and more than 10 percent have had thoughts of suicide, according to a new survey of young adults attending schools around the state. The survey of more than 10,000 students at 13 of Washington’s two- and four-year institutions shows the need…


September 5, 2017

Gun dealers, suicide-prevention advocates partner to save lives

Forefront logo

  With 80 percent of firearms deaths in Washington related to suicide, the scenario isn’t hard to imagine: A person thinking of ending their life enters a gun store to buy the means to do it. Unfortunately, other scenarios play out, as well: A person filling a lethal dose of a prescription medication at a…


May 11, 2017

Suicide prevention messages are top priority for UW’s Forefront

University of Washington advocates for suicide prevention were busy pushing for legislation in Olympia, working on programs with more than a dozen local high schools and organizing the fourth annual Husky Help & Hope walk when an online TV show about suicide suddenly captivated a teenage audience. To the staff of UW-based Forefront: Innovations in…


January 31, 2017

UW’s Forefront to recreate memorial, advocate for solutions at Suicide Prevention Education Day in Olympia

Photograph of 2016 memorial

The UW-based Forefront will host a memorial for Washington state residents who died by suicide and join firearms dealers, veterans’ organizations, pharmacists, health care providers and suicide attempt and loss survivors to advocate for two legislative bills as part of Suicide Prevention Education Day.


September 6, 2016

Forefront marks World Suicide Prevention Day Sept. 10 with workshops, documentary film

World Suicide Prevention Day, Sept. 10, is a reminder that we all have a role to play in preventing suicide. Forefront: Innovations in Suicide Prevention, based in the UW School of Social Work and led by Professor Jennifer Stuber, is offering a film and two suicide prevention workshops on Sept. 10.


May 11, 2016

UW-led suicide prevention initiative planned for Washington colleges and universities

The University of Washington is leading a new, four-year collaboration aimed at promoting mental health and preventing suicide at colleges and universities around the state. The initiative is a partnership between Forefront: Innovations in Suicide Prevention — an organization in the UW School of Social Work — and the New York-based Jed Foundation, which focuses…


March 31, 2016

UW, gun-rights groups come together in new law to prevent suicide

After her husband ended his life with a bullet in 2011, Jennifer Stuber went to the two Washington stores where he had bought guns to talk with the owners about suicide prevention. That bold move by Stuber, an associate professor at the University of Washington School of Social Work, eventually led to the passage of…


January 22, 2016

UW’s Forefront backs effort to engage gun dealers and pharmacies on suicide prevention

Patty Yamashita was a vivacious, sweet, high-energy woman who balanced a career as an IT manager with a steadfast dedication to her family. She worked long hours but was always home to put dinner on the table and read a bedtime story for her children. “My mother was my hero,” said her son, David. “Usually…


January 6, 2016

UW faculty members join Inslee in gun violence announcement

Two University of Washington faculty members joined Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Wednesday as he announced a new initiative to reduce gun-related deaths by strengthening background checks and implementing a statewide suicide prevention plan. Jennifer Stuber, an associate professor at the UW School of Social Work, and Monica Vavilala, director of the Harborview Injury Prevention and…


December 15, 2015

Forefront launches suicide prevention effort in three rural Washington counties

Suicide is a tough issue to broach. How could an adult know if a child in the community might be suicidal and when to intervene? Is it appropriate to ask a friends or colleagues if they’re considering suicide? If someone is in crisis, what’s the best way to respond? Forefront: Innovations in Suicide Prevention hopes…