TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – According to the CDC, more than 49,000 people died by suicide in 2022, which is the equivalent of one death per 11 minutes in the United States. September is national Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and the Florida Association of Managing Entities is raising awareness about suicide prevention efforts.
Florida’s seven Managing Entities oversee Florida’s behavioral health safety net system, including essential crisis services that help prevent suicide.
“Nearly four million Americans made a plan to die by suicide and nearly two million attempted suicide in 2022,” said Natalie Kelly, CEO of FAME. “Connecting individuals experiencing a mental health crisis with behavioral health services saves lives. Florida’s Managing Entities serve Floridians beyond those in the safety net system by managing the network that provides Crisis Stabilization Units, Mobile Response Teams, peer support hotlines, and supporting prevention campaigns.”
The Managing Entities meet the unique needs of Florida’s communities. There are various programs that help stabilize individuals who need it and connect them with lifesaving behavioral health services, engaging partners such as the faith-based and veteran communities.
Some of these programs include: Mobile Response Teams of highly trained counselors that de-escalate situations; high level of care coordination for individuals; hospital bridge programs that coordinate services after an individual is stabilized in the emergency department; and school mental health services among other behavioral health services.
Florida’s Managing Entities collaborate with providers that deliver services to over 300,000 of Florida’s most vulnerable residents, including children, expectant mothers, veterans, and the chronically homeless. Additionally, the system provides nearly 1.7 million Floridians with preventative services and reaches hundreds of thousands more through indirect preventative services, such as education initiatives.