Training

Gathering confidence and momentum as a DBT skills expert

• Training includes a 26-hour online course for service providers working with people experiencing mental health and substance-use struggles. 
  • The course includes 12 DBT Skills taught over 12 months. Micro-Interventions Course is a prerequisite. CMEs available. 
    • Bite Size DBT Skills Part 1 Registration (register and complete Micro-Interventions to be auto-enrolled in this course).

The Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention (OSP) is pleased to offer a virtual, two-day Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (BCBT) Workshop through Anduril LLC to Colorado health care professionals who provide ongoing mental health treatment and support.

The BCBT Workshops will consist of two 8-hour, online sessions from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. MST. Attendance on both consecutive days is required to receive certification. While registration does not come with a cost, those accepted to attend are required to purchase the BCBT manual (Publisher/Amazon) to participate in the training. 

Training dates

OSP offers four opportunities to participate in the training:

• February 6-7, 2025
• March 17-18, 2025
• April 10-11, 2025
• April 28-29, 2025

Please indicate the date/s you are available on your application. Applying does not automatically guarantee enrollment. OSP will inform you if you have been selected to participate in the two-day training at least three weeks before the training. If you are unable to attend after applying, we ask that you kindly inform OSP staff promptly.

Apply

The application link will be posted here by mid to late November 2024. 

Please note

Continuing Education credits will not be offered for this training. However, OSP will assist in connecting providers to alternative BCBT training opportunities if needed.
 

CAMS is an evidence-based, suicide-focused treatment framework backed by 30 years of clinical research and 5 randomized controlled trials. To learn more about the training, visit CAMS-Care.com.

The Office of Suicide Prevention has partnered with the CAMS team to offer free trainings to clinicians and other mental health professionals in Colorado, who provide ongoing behavioral health treatment. If you are a behavioral health provider interested in participating, you may sign up to receive information about future training dates on our CAMS Interest List. 

Subscribe to our newsletter to be notified about upcoming CAMS Training opportunities.

If you are a behavioral health provider interested in participating in one of the above dates, please add your contact information to our CAMS Interest List and you will be notified when the next training application is open for registration. 

Providers who have already been trained in CAMS have the option of registering on the CAMS Clinician Locator, which will route new clients to your practice, particularly those looking for competent clinicians, trained in evidence-based suicide-specific treatments. 

New Consultation Calls Update

As part of our ongoing commitment to providing clinicians in Colorado with training in evidence-based suicide-focused treatment, we encourage providers who participated in one of the CAMS training offered through the Office of Suicide Prevention, to also participate in CAMS Consultation Calls either to complete their CAMS TRAINED designation (4 calls required) or to ask advice from CAMS experts. These one-hour calls are a great forum to discuss cases you are managing or questions you might have on best practices, the CAMS Framework, the Suicide Status Form, considerations for working with specific populations, and how evidence-based treatment fits into your system of care.
 
Consultation Calls are now available to you at no charge. For more information on how to register for any of the upcoming Consultation Calls, please email cdphe_suicideprevention@state.co.us *Please note that you must have previously participated in a CAMS training offered through the Office of Suicide Prevention to participate in the Consultation Calls. Your participation in one of these cohorts will be verified upon registration.

Already CAMS Trained™? New CAMS Certified™ Opportunity

OSP encourages providers who have completed the CAMS Trained™ designation to become CAMS Certified. To become CAMS Certified™, a CAMS Trained™ provider must pass the CAMS 3rd Edition Book CE test and complete a two-hour Suicide Status Form Review consultation with a National CAMS expert. The CAMS Certified designation demonstrates that a CAMS Trained provider has competence and fidelity to the CAMS Framework.

OSP is covering the costs of the CAMS Certified™ designation for a limited number of Colorado providers!  

If you would like to be connected to CAMS to begin the CAMS Certified™ process, or would like to learn more about becoming CAMS Certified™, please email cdphe_suicideprevention@state.co.us.

The Safety Planning Intervention for Suicidal Individuals training from the New York State Office of Mental Health and Columbia University describes the Safety Planning Intervention and how it can help individuals, explains when to work with individuals to create a safety plan, and describes the steps in creating a safety plan. 

Safety planning and means reduction are integral parts of comprehensive suicide care. Clinicians should collaboratively develop safety plans with all persons identified as at risk for suicide, immediately after identifying the risk. The plan should include steps for lethal means safety, balanced with respect for legal and ethical requirements under federal and state laws. To develop effective safety plans and organizational policies for lethal means assessment and counseling, staff training is typically necessary and the input of those with lived experience is essential.

By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

1. identify safety planning and lethal means reduction as part of a comprehensive Zero Suicide approach;
2. discuss ways to maximize the effectiveness of a safety plan;
3. develop an organizational policy for lethal means reduction; and
4. explain the importance of input from people with lived experience during safety planning and means reduction policy development.

Counseling on Access to Lethal Means can help you feel prepared to talk with people about means safety.

Reducing access to lethal means, such as firearms and medication, can determine whether a person at risk for suicide lives or dies. This course is about how to reduce access to the methods people use to kill themselves. It covers who needs lethal means counseling and how to work with people at risk for suicide—and their families—to reduce access.

Brief Interventions for Clinical Care Using the Zero Suicide Framework

Training includes a two-hour online course designed to provide a practical and effective approach for service providers working with patients experiencing mental health and substance-use struggles (including suicidal thoughts). The course includes four “micro-interventions” which can be delivered in 5 minutes or less. CMEs and social work CEs available. Making it Matter with Micro-Interventions from Dr. Ursula Whiteside Registration Link.

A parallel training for the general public is available. Share with those you provide services to, and with their friends and family members. The Community Course information. 

Implementing the New National Guideline with Practical Resources

• Suicide Safe Care Training includes a 2-hour online course (including an independent work assignment) for primary care and other service providers. 
• The course covers the new national guidelines for working with patients at risk for suicide as well as free evidence-based resources to share with suicidal patients. 
• Free CMEs.

The Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention is pleased to offer Columbia Protocol training to youth-serving agencies across the state in partnership with the Columbia Lighthouse Project. The training is funded by OSP and comes at NO COST to you.

The Columbia Protocol, also known as the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS), supports suicide risk assessment through a series of simple, plain-language questions that anyone can ask. The answers help users identify whether someone is at risk for suicide, assess the severity and immediacy of that risk, and gauge the level of support that the person needs.

• Registration is ongoing, or until capped. 
• Please select one of the three training dates and a calendar invite and Zoom link will be sent to you after registering. 

Training Dates

Register Today to Reserve Your Space

• Register. (Google Doc)

Questions

Email jazmin.murguia@state.co.us.

The Office of Suicide Prevention is pleased to announce that we have partnered with LivingWorks, to provide to our partners across Colorado free access to the LivingWorks Start gatekeeper training, to aid in your suicide prevention efforts. LivingWorks Start is a one-hour, online, interactive training program that gives you the skills and knowledge to keep family, friends, co-workers, and others safe from suicide. 

To access the training, navigate to the below Colorado-specific URL and create your account. Your enrollment in LivingWorks Start is only valid for the next 60 days so we encourage you to get started with your learning as soon as you can!

Register

• Living Works Training Signup. (Living Works form)

Once you have created your account you can proceed to the learning catalog and add the LivingWorks Start course to your cart and then click on checkout.

Please note

• You will need to provide an address in the checkout screen. You can use your organization’s address. Please follow the directions in the onscreen popup message when entering your address.
• The Coupon Code is entered on this checkout screen. 
  • Use Coupon Code: COLDOPHE
• Once you have registered for the LivingWorks Start course, you can launch the course by clicking the "LivingWorks Start" hyperlink in your order confirmation, or, navigating to the "Me" menu in the application. 
• Please feel free to share this information with stakeholders in your county. Please note that we have a limited number of licenses available for use available on a first come, first served basis.
• Important Note: Please do not share the URL and access code outside of Colorado.

*LivingWorks Start works best with Google Chrome, Firefox, or Microsoft Edge browsers. It is not Internet Explorer compatible.

If you have any questions or issues accessing the training, please email CDPHE_suicideprevention@state.co.us.

Mental Health First Aid is an 8-hour course that teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders.

Mental Health First Aid is a live training program — like regular First Aid or CPR — designed to give people the skills to help someone who is developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. 

The course uses role-playing and simulations to demonstrate how to recognize and respond to the warning signs of specific illnesses. Mental Health First Aid teaches participants a five-step action plan, ALGEE, to support someone developing signs and symptoms of a mental illness or in an emotional crisis. To locate a trainer or access funding support, please visit the Mental Health First Aid Colorado site.

S.A.V.E. is a one- to two-hour gatekeeper training program provided by VA suicide prevention coordinators to veterans and those who serve veterans. Optional role-playing exercises are included. The VA Eastern and Western Colorado Health Care Systems offer free Veteran Suicide Prevention S.A.V.E. (“Signs”, “Ask,” “Validate,” and “Encourage” and “Expedite”) trainings to anyone who knows, works with, lives with, or cares for Service members, Veterans, and their families. Trainings can be provided virtually or in person, and the time commitment is 75 minutes.

• A brief overview of suicide in the veteran population.
• Suicide myths and misinformation.
• Risk factors for suicide.
• Components of the S.A.V.E. model (Signs of suicide, Asking about suicide, Validating feelings, Encouraging help and Expediting treatment).

Eastern Colorado Veterans Administration Contact

• Email VHAECHSuicidePreventionTeam@va.gov 

Western Colorado Veterans Administration Contact

• Email Rainy.Reaman@va.gov