About NYS Capital Connect
- Why the New York State Capital Region?
The Capital Region was chosen because it has higher rates of suicide attempts and deaths than the rest of the state.
Within Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady counties, NYS Department of Health surveillance data readily identify two target populations:
- Adolescents, especially girls, who have been increasingly present to emergency departments in suicidal crisis.
- Working-age men, whose suicide rate is nearly triple that of the general population.
- The Grant’s Core Components:
- Data-driven selection of target populations.
- Development of a partnership plan across many sectors, not just healthcare.
- Use of evidence-based and best practice prevention strategies that target risk and protective factors.
- An active community engagement, communications, and dissemination program.
- Project Goals:
- 10 percent decrease in suicide attempts and deaths in the targeted groups.
- Make suicide prevention interventions more accessible and reduce disparities in the Capital Region.
- Data & Resources:
- Risk Profile: Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors among New York High School Students: 2021 New York Youth Risk Behavior Survey
- Population Profile: Suicide Morbidity and Mortality Among Working-Age Men in New York State
- The New York State Department of Health recently released their annual data brief for 2024, describing suspected suicide-related emergency department visits to New York hospitals (outside of New York City). View the data brief.
- View previous syndromic data briefs.
- View more Information from the New York State Department of Health on suicide and self-harm injuries.
“While our state’s mental health resources are among the best in the nation, we still lose far too many New Yorkers to suicide each year. With a focused approach to prevention, we can better identify groups and industries most at risk and ensure they have access to resources, and this $5 million grant will help us provide critical support and foster connections among vulnerable individuals throughout the Capital Region.” –Governor Kathy Hochul
“Research with diverse populations and age groups clearly shows that social connection matters when it comes to our mental well-being. And while there is no one solution to the complex problem of suicide, by working across sectors and using a number of proven strategies supporting healthy social connection, we can make a difference and save lives.” –New York State Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan