The Suicide Prevention Center of Clark County plans to double the number of
volunteers staffing suicide hot lines over New Year's weekend.

For many years, the county has ranked No. 1 in the country for rate of suicide, and the year-end holidays are one of the worst times of the year for the lonely deaths.

But with the millennium hype, suicide prevention volunteers expect it to be even
worse this year.

The holidays are a particularly tough time for some people, noted Bryant, a
psychologist.

"They're out here alone, some don't know the city, many are dealing with emotion and physical problems," Bryant said.

The latest figures show that 251 of the 286 suicides in Clark County last year were
committed by Las Vegas Valley residents.

Despite the high rate of suicides in Clark County, which is double the national
rate, just two years ago state legislators killed a request by the Nevada Senior Suicide
Prevention Task Force for $364,000 to fund a two-year outreach program.

For the Suicide Prevention Center, help appeared to be on the horizon in
September 1998 when the University of Nevada School of Medicine won a $1.5 million
federal grant to establish the nation's first Suicide Prevention Research Center. But
none of those federal dollars were specifically for the center.

The announcement of the federal grant may have actually hurt the hot line, Bryant
noted. She said some people who made donations before the announcement later
canceled, wrongly thinking the center was going to get some of the grant money.

Currently, the suicide prevention center is so under-funded that Bryant figured it
has enough money to run though January.


"We're saving this community a lot of money, because we don't charge for our services," said Bryant. "At the same time, we do need money for rent, telephones. We
need some help."

Gleaned from the LVRJ, Dec. 26, 1999.


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gail@talkvegas.com
Moderator, TalkVegas After Hours
Administrator, TalkVegas BB




[This message has been edited by gailsacco (edited December 27, 1999).]