Canadian Research and Knowledge Translation Agenda on Suicide

Role of cultural factors and suicide rates

Are some cultures more/less prone to suicide and why

Prescribe mental health: Impact of MD issued prescriptions for active living to rewire the brain for better mental health

What strategies are most effective in reducing the number of boys and men dying by suicide?

How do interventions on upstream determinants of health affect suicide rates?

The preponderance of suicide prevention interventions are focussed on individuals, or at time, communities. Few studies examine the impact of interventions on upstream determinants of health on suicide rates. Given that suicide is socially patterned, are there effective upstream interventions that many have a great impact on suicide due to their greater reach?

What is the social-epigenetics of suicide risk as a co-occurring condition of FASD, and what is the intergenerational co-occurring risk?

Individuals diagnosed with FASD are at a greater risk for suicide, yet little is known about the social-epigenetics of this co-occurring cluster. As well, little is known about the intergenerational underpinning of this risk, including the unfortunate suicide risk potential of a mother who gives birth to a child who is diagnosed with FASD. Further, It is equally important to develop proactive prevention and intervention programs that focus on this co-occurring cluster, child and mother, FASD and suicide. This research would build on Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission Call to Action and a recently developed social- biobanking initiative called Translating to the Community: A social epigenetic study of FASD. This University-Indigenous Community-FASD Clinic Social Biobank is seeking to develop an earlier diagnosis of FASD and its associated conditions and behaviours and to refine and develop programs that improve the quality of life for children, youth, adults, families and communities impacted by this life-long condition and social-biological-health cluster.

Summaries of research findings, information sheets, with original research studies well cited. Both online and print materials.

Workshops, webinars, presentations

Peer-reviewed publications of research studies and systematic reviews

These are NOT the most accessible nor quickest means of obtaining information. However, if one has a high stake in a topic (e.g., because one is personally or professionally invovled with the topic) and one doesn't want to rely on someone else's summary of the research, one really has to plow into the primary literature.

Accessible documents that allow for various populations to access research findings and implement their suggestions

There is always a gap in time between the creation of knowledge and the implementation of that knowledge. This gap may be in part due to the difficulty of access to research findings by those outside of academic circles. Relevant research findings should not be available only to those with paid access to peer-reviewed journal articles or the ability to attend conferences. A knowledge transfer plan for suicide research findings should include free public access to information in various forms, such as online materials and print materials in accessible language. By working together to close the knowledge transfer gap, we can quicken the uptake of new, evidence-based practices, and overall improve the ability of communities at large to strengthen suicide prevention efforts.

Hit me with some TED talks with a small smattering of peer-reviewed articles, easily digestible information with a lot of meat