Rural New York Mental Health Listening Tour
Problem
Suicide rates are twice as high in New York's rural areas
The suicide rate in rural New York is disproportionately higher than in urban New York (15.2 vs. 7.5 per 100,000 people) and is increasing at a significantly greater rate (83.1 percent vs. 27.9 percent between 2004 and 2020). In fact, the suicide rate increased 17 percent in rural areas of the state between 2019 and 2020 alone.
Reasons why rural areas are disproportionately impacted by suicide are well known and include lack of services and resources, economic disadvantage, gun ownership, low service utilization, long travel distances, lack of transportation, and heightened stigma surrounding the use of mental health services. However, these challenges have not yet been effectively addressed to lower the suicide rate. Input and feedback from those who live and work in rural areas are needed to better understand how to develop and implement a comprehensive approach to suicide prevention tailored to rural communities.
Solution
NORC conducted a mental health listening tour with rural New York professionals and residents.
As part of a statewide listening tour, NORC conducted 32 listening sessions with 289 individuals in 16 rural counties in New York between March 2020 and September 2021. We held separate listening sessions with professionals who have a role in the mental health of the community (e.g., health and behavioral health providers, law enforcement, first responders, clergy, school personnel, local government staff and officials, and suicide prevention coalition members) and with other county residents 18 years of age and older. Afterward, we conducted a thematic analysis of all transcripts from these sessions to code content and identify themes.
Result
New York, its rural communities, and other states now across the country now have evidence-based recommendations to inform their own suicide prevention efforst and potentially save lives.
With input from rural professionals and residents, our listening tour yielded rich information, identifying community-specific strengths, assets, and challenges, and innovative approaches to suicide prevention. Our analysis underscored the need for a tailored, community-specific approach to suicide prevention and led to to the following actionable recommendations:
- Funding and expanding education, training, and peer supports
- Improving health care service delivery and system navigation
- Adjusting funding and regulatory approaches
New York State, its rural communities, and other states across the country now have evidence-based recommendations to inform their own suicide prevention efforts and potentially save lives.
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Data & Findings
“In our conversations with almost 300 rural residents, we learned how each community is unique, suggesting the need for a targeted, community-specific approach to suicide prevention that is driven by the voice of its residents. This ‘nothing for us without us approach’ was critical in helping us develop actionable recommendations for improving mental health services, resources, and supports in rural communities.”
