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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Extra Credit

Facebook wants to help prevent suicides

Facebook users share details about their life every second of the day, sometimes what people write is a sign of trouble.

The mega social network is collaborating with researchers at Forefront: Innovations in Suicide Prevention, an interdisciplinary organization based in the University of Washington's School of Social Work, to help support suicidal people.

Working with UW and other mental health experts, Facebook has implemented its tools to tell people how they can help when they see suicidal posts on the social media site.

When someone sees a post that suggests its author might be considering suicide, they can click on a dropdown menu and report the post to Facebook.

"That reporting activates a series of responses," said Deborah Bach, UW social sciences writer. "The person who flags the post will see a screen with links that allow them to message the potentially suicidal person, contact another Facebook friend for support or connect with a trained professional at a suicide helpline for guidance."

Here's a video about the new collaboration:

 

 



Jody Lawrence-Turner
Jody Lawrence-Turner covers K-12 education.

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