WELLESLEY HILLS, MA (August 25, 2011) — The Suicide Prevention Resource Center/American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has listed the DORA College Program (Depression OutReach Alliance) in Section III of the Best Practices Registry (BPR) for Suicide Prevention. A panel of suicide prevention experts reviewed the DORA program for accuracy, safety, likelihood of meeting goals and objectives, and adherence to prevention program guidelines. Practices listed in Section III of the BPR address specific objectives of the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.

“This is a tremendous honor and a testament of our continued commitment and dedication to providing the best mental health programs for colleges and universities,” says Douglas G. Jacobs, M.D., associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and founder and president of Screening for Mental Health, Inc., the nonprofit organization that created the DORA program. “DORA is designed to be administered to students, by students, working together with clinical professionals on campus. This unique peer-to-peer approach gives students the tools and resources they need to make a difference in their life or the life of a friend.”

The DORA College Program was created to address the unique challenges college students face. Research from a 2009 Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and the University of Maryland study indicates that for college-aged students, a lack of social support from friends and family is correlated with suicidal thoughts and behavior. The study, which tracked 1,085 students during their four years at college, also highlighted the value of screening students for depression, as it helps identify those at high risk.

More than 100 DORA College Program kits have been distributed to colleges and universities across the United States. The program’s primary teaching tool is an educational DVD profiling students who struggled with depression and suicidal ideation and are now in recovery thanks to the support of peers and mental health professionals (view the trailer of the educational DVD). The program also includes individual student workbooks with several activities designed to teach students the importance of early intervention and professional help-seeking when it comes to suicide prevention. For more information on the program, visit https://mentalhealthscreening.org/programs/colleges/dora.aspx.

Screening for Mental Health, Inc. (SMH) is dedicated to promoting the improvement of mental health by providing the public with education, screening, and treatment resources. SMH pioneered the concept of large-scale mental health screening and education programs in 1991, with its flagship program, National Depression Screening Day®. SMH programs—both in-person and online—educate, raise awareness, and screen individuals for depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, and alcohol use disorders.

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