Clergy and suicide prevention: A qualitative exploration of experiences and needs

Introduction: Faith leaders may be called upon to minister to congregation members contemplating suicide. However, clergy may have limited training, resources, or experience counseling potential suicide victims. We interviewed clergy regarding their suicide prevention activities and needs. Methods Faith leaders representing multiple faith traditions, identified from national church contact lists, were invited via phone to participate in structured interviews (509 contacts, 31 participants). Suicide prevention-related training, experience, faith-specific conceptualization, and engagement in relevant prevention behaviors were assessed and subjected to multi-stage mixed methods analysis. Results: The median age was 53 years (Range 25-72y); 83.9% male, 71.0% white and 16.1% African American; 74.2% Christian, 9.7% Jewish, 6.5% Islamic, 3.2% Hindu, and 6.5% unaffiliated. The majority (83.9%) were college graduates or greater, with an average tenure of 23.5 years. 51.6% had counseled members about suicidal ideation, and 35.5% had a congregation member commit suicide. While 58.1% indicated some suicide-related training, only 66.7% of these believed their training had sufficiently prepared them for handling suicide in their faith organization. One-in-five stated inadequate knowledge of available health care providers was a direct barrier to referring at-risk faith members. Moreover, 55% stated that increased understanding of how to access and refer to health care providers would assist them to support faith members. Conclusion: These results promote understanding of faith leaders' experience with and beliefs regarding suicide prevention and suggest specific resources, tools, and, in particular, cross-provider relationship building that may improve suicide-related outcomes among those at heightened risk.