Spokane nonprofit on a mission to end suicide

It’s a familiar experience for teachers: A student is acting out in class, disrupting others and ignoring instructions.

Katie Bousley, a ninth-grade algebra teach in Spokane Valley, remembers when a student came to class in a bad mood and wrote profanity on their desk and arm.

After attempts to stop the behavior failed, Bousley took the student into the hallway to talk — but they wouldn’t look her in the eye. Instead of getting frustrated, she leaned into her FailSafe for Life training.

“I told them I cared about them, but they’re better than this,” she recalls.

When Bousley noticed tears in the student’s eyes, she asked if they wanted to speak with someone. They nodded yes, so she sent them to the school counselor.

Bousley found out later the student had been making plans to end their life. She says she was lucky to have recognized something was different about their behavior in time.

“But what if I hadn’t known?” she asks.

That’s why Bousley believes it is so important people are equipped to recognize suicide warning signs, make connections and ask tough questions — things she learned through FailSafe for Life.

FailSafe is on a mission to end suicide in the Inland Northwest through connection, education and hope, says Sabrina Votava, FailSafe for Life founder and board president.

Votava’s immense passion to spread awareness about this important topic comes from a very personal place: She lost both of her brothers to suicide within six months of one another. A Spokane native, she was inspired to bring her background in public health and deep understanding of mental illness to her own community.

The nonprofit offers a range of trainings that cover suicide intervention and prevention. Courses focus on how to recognize warning signs, how to offer support, risk factors of suicide, what community resources are available and simple steps anyone can take to prevent suicide.

“There’s no demographic excluded from suicide,” Votava says. “Our trainings are open to everyone in the community. When you think about who should be trained for CPR, we’re very similar.”

Common participants include those in the mental health field, case and social workers and veterans’ services staff, chaplains and nurses. FailSafe also works with parents and families, as well as the Spokane school district.

Spokane County has had more than 90 suicides annually since 2013, with a high of 122 in 2017, according to the Spokane County Medical Examiner. In 2021, there were 109 suicides.

It’s more important to look at trends over time, which are increasing locally, says Votava.

Disaster psychology shows us that immediately after a large disaster — such as a global pandemic — the rate of suicide sometimes decreases as the community comes together, she says. As the pandemic continues to rise and fall, those “honeymoon” periods will shrink and may result in a rebound of suicides.

What are the warning signs and risk factors of suicide?  

Some of the most common risk factors: losing a sense of purpose, hope or meaningful connection, or feeling like a burden to others, Votava says. The latter is higher in older populations and middle-aged men going through significant life changes, such as a medical diagnosis or career shift.

Regionally, rural and low-income communities with limited access to mental health resources also face their own heightened struggles with suicide risk, Votava says.

“There are certain populations … at higher risk,” she says. “Military, LGBTQ+ … [and] we see higher numbers for young black men than other races.”

In adolescents, try looking for behavior changes or indicators of depression, says Bousley, the Spokane Valley teacher and FailSafe for Life board member.. Aggressive behavior, disinterest in activities and changes in grades or class participation can all be warning signs if they’re outside the norm for a person.

Some students may suddenly alter their appearance or begin wearing long sleeves, Bousley adds. And some may even lash out.

“All of a sudden, they’re needing attention,” she says. “Jumping from friend group to friend group or blurting things out in class.”

The FailSafe for Life team also stresses the importance of limiting access to both firearms and medications. They partnered with Washington’s Safer Homes, Suicide Aware campaign, which found that many people store their firearms safely, but not their medications.

Limiting access to such things is one way people can help prevent suicide attempts.

Katie Bousley, center, is a FailSafe for Life board member and uses her prevention training to advocate for mental health awareness and resources in her role as a high school algebra teacher in Spokane County.

How to connect with someone you’re worried about

“The big thing is just checking in,” Bousley says. “You might be the world to one person and not know it. No matter what or who you are, you have the ability to make a change.”

Bousley recalls another moment from work with a colleague who told her they were contemplating whether they wanted to live.

Using her training, Bousley thanked them for sharing and asked if they had come up with a plan. After determining they were not an immediate danger to themselves and they knew where to get assistance, she says their connection became even stronger.

“In that one moment we forged a unique bond,” she says. “And now we’re able to talk more openly because they see me as a safe person.”

Sometimes, Bousley says, all someone needs is to be heard and understood.

How do we end suicide?

“The only way we’ll be able to move the needle on suicide is to normalize the conversation,” Votava says. “To me, that starts at home.”

To Votava, it’s important she talk to her children about mental health and what happened to her brothers. She doesn’t go into detail or spend too much time on it, but they’re aware of what happened.

Completely avoiding the topic only reinforces the stigma surrounding mental health and suicide, she says. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, one in five people struggle with some form of mental illness.

“Mental health used to be characterized as a character flaw; you’re weak or you need to get over it,” Votava says. “Some of that still lingers, but now we know how much mental health is impacted by so many things we don’t have control over.”

FailSafe for Life is proud to start these conversations, she says, and help the community feel more comfortable talking about difficult and uncomfortable things with loved ones.

Learn more about FailSafe for Life or register for an upcoming training at failsafeforlife.org.

“Partnering for healing and a healthy future” is MultiCare’s mission, and it inspires us to form connections that help improve the quality of life for our communities. Community organizations all around us are doing amazing work, and we’re inspired and excited to support that work.

Stories from our Community is an ongoing series conceived to dive into some of these organizations*, bring their stories to life and spread the word about how they are making our communities better.

*Some of the organizations profiled in this series are recipients of MultiCare’s Community Partnership Fund, which awards funds to nonprofit organizations working on initiatives, programs and projects that improve our community.