Forefront is on the frontlines of schools, higher education, workplaces, communities, and health care organizations partnering to save lives. We offer innovative messaging, training, and interventions that are on the forefront of the suicide prevention field.

Much of what is learned in research is never implemented or scaled to the population level. The gap in the research-to-practice pipeline can be challenging. Our approach is decidedly different. We can’t wait 5 to 10 years to take action; an American dies by suicide every 11 minutes.

Forefront fills the gap in the research-to-practice pipeline by capitalizing on what we already know about suicide prevention, and by working with various communities and key stakeholders to implement innovative prevention strategies and policies.

We use existing knowledge about suicide prevention to implement programs that are evidence based, but that are also flexible enough to adapt and grow in response to the rapidly changing landscape of the field of suicide prevention. We also work to ensure that our programs are tailored to the unique cultural needs of the communities we serve, and we focus on building partnerships with communities, organizations, and stakeholders to create sustainable and lasting suicide prevention programs.

To ensure we are providing the most effective and highest quality messaging, training, and interventions, we strategically evaluate all aspects of our programs for quality and impact. Each year we choose a small number of projects that we subject to rigorous evaluation through high quality research designs and methods. These research projects are chosen based on their potential to influence the science in the field of suicidology in profound ways.

Everything we create is informed by implementation constraints. We continually problem solve to address these challenges. This approach means that we are able to simultaneously impact both the research and implementation fields of suicide prevention–because we can’t afford to wait. Forefront’s evaluation and research team is interested in saving lives today.

Publications & Reports

Elaine Walsh PhD, RN, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN, Zoe Tapp MPH, Emma Mallonee MPH, Camille Hakansson MPA, Ambyr Leigh MPH, Megan Reibel MEd (2024) Implementing LEARN: Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Training for High School Students, Parents, and School Personnel Journal of School Health Published Online First: 25 October 2024. http://doi.org/10.1111/josh.13516 

Olson, J.R., Lucy, M., Kellogg, M.A., Schmitz, K., Berntson, T., Stuber, J., Bruns, E.J. (2021) What happens when training goes virtual? Adapting training and technical assistance for the school mental health workforce in response to COVID=19  School Mental Health Published Online First: 4 January 2021. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-020-09401-x

Stuber, J.P., Massey, A., Meadows, M., Bass, B., & Rowhani-Rahbar, A. (2020) SAFER brief community intervention: a primary suicide prevention strategy to improve firearm and medication storage behavior. Injury Prevention Published Online First: 19 October 2020. https://doi.org/10.1136/injuryprev-2020-043902

Decou, C.R., Stuber, J., Payn, B., Ratzliff, A., (2020) Clinicians’ knowledge of suicide-specific practices in two large healthcare systems in Washington General Hospital Psychiatry, 64, 121-122  https://doi.org:10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2019.10.005

Massey AE, Borghesani P, Stuber J, Ratzliff A, Rivara FP, Rowhani-Rahbar A. (2020) Lethal Means Assessment in Psychiatric Emergency Services: Frequency and Characteristics of Assessment. Archives of suicide research: official journal of the International Academy for Suicide Research, 1–15. Published online: 25 Jun 2020 http://doi.org/10.1080/13811118.2020.1783411

Walton and Stuber (2019) Firearm Retailers and Suicide: Results from a Survey Assessing Willingness to Engage in Prevention Efforts. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 50(1) https://doi.org/10.1111/sltb.12574

Suicide Prevention Training, Behavioral Health Services & Awareness Raising Among Washington State Postsecondary Education Institutions – Report to Washington State Legislature 2019, Forefront Suicide Prevention, retrieved from URL: https://app.leg.wa.gov/ReportsToTheLegislature/Home/GetPDF?fileName=SSB_6514_FINAL_REPORT_12.01.19_ed59cb8b-f7da-4c22-a31c-7992a39bca39.pdf

Stuber and Quinnett (2013) Making the Case for Primary Care and Mandated Suicide Prevention Education. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 43(2) https://doi.org/10.1111/sltb.12010