The Sacramento County Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), Community Services and Suuport (CSS) and Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) community planning processes identified suicide risk and crisis intervention as a high priority need in the African American community. As a result, the African American Suicide Prevention Project (AASPP). was established to expand services by providing cultural and ethnic specific strategies with the goal of suicide prevention.
During our first year, we conducted a community needs assessment that included focus groups with high risk populations and a general community survey. We took those recommendations and designed the project based upon the input received. We also created a community advisory committee made up of people with lived experience, professionals and adovcates who provide ongoing consultation to the project.
