QPR Gatekeeper Training: Suicide Prevention with Cultural Competence

This two-hour professional development course equips school personnel, mental health professionals, and community leaders with life-saving skills to recognize and respond to suicide risk using the evidence-based QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) method. The first hour focuses on core QPR gatekeeper training, including how to identify warning signs, dispel common myths, and apply the three-step intervention process.

The second hour emphasizes culturally responsive suicide prevention. Participants will examine how cultural identity, stigma, language, and historical context influence mental health perceptions and help-seeking behaviors. Through practical exercises, role-play, and group discussion, participants will develop culturally informed strategies for applying QPR effectively within diverse communities. This training fosters both competence and confidence to intervene with empathy and effectiveness—bridging the gap between evidence-based practice and real-world diversity.

By the end of the training, participants will be able to:

- Question someone about suicidal thoughts in a direct and supportive way

- Persuade them to seek help

- Refer them to appropriate mental health resources

- Describe the goals of the Stanley-Brown Safety Plan in suicide prevention.

- Differentiate between a safety plan and a no-suicide contract.

- Identify the evidence-based foundation for using safety plans with clients at risk of suicide.

- Identify and explain each of the six steps on the safety plan form.

- Demonstrate how to collaboratively complete each section with a client.

- Analyze brief clinical vignettes to assess risk and apply safety planning strategies.

- Practice completing the Stanley-Brown form in small groups or pairs using realistic client scenarios.

- Adapt the plan for clients from diverse cultural backgrounds or with specific mental health diagnoses.

- Explain when and how to revisit and revise a safety plan in ongoing sessions.

- Identify barriers clients may face in using a safety plan and how to address them.

- Emphasize the importance of checking client understanding and engagement with the plan.

- Describe how to document the creation and review of a safety plan in clinical notes.

- Identify how to coordinate with school personnel, family, or outside providers (with appropriate consent) to support implementation.

- Establish protocols for supervision and consultation when managing high-risk clients.

$35 for non-members. $20 for MMHCA members (use discount code found in the member portal). Register below.

Presenter Bio

Sean A. Wilson, MA, PLPC, CAMS-II, is a Provisionally Licensed Professional Counselor and a certified QPR Suicide Prevention Instructor. He has recently been selected to become a QPR Master Instructor, one of only three in Missouri. Sean holds a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling from Webster University and is currently pursuing an EdS in Community Counseling, focusing on Marriage and Family Therapy. He conducts QPR trainings across Missouri, equipping professionals to recognize and respond to suicide risk. Additionally, he specializes in TEAM-CBT and the Gottman Method (Level 2) and is a Certified Anger Management Specialist-II, as well as a trained family and civil mediator, offering evidence-based care.

*Training could be cancelled or postponed if there are not more than 5 registrants for this date’s training. By registering for this training using the MMHCA Online Education Platform, you are acknowledging your participation and payment for this course.  Should you, the participant, need to withdraw from a registered course, you must provide a minimum of 48 hour notification to MMHCA by contacting us.  Upon notification you will be permitted to re-enroll into another course within the fiscal operating year or may request a refund.  Refunds for courses are 75% of your total enrollment costs.  Individuals who do not attend a training that was paid and registered for will not qualify for a reimbursement for the course or rescheduling the course because prior notification was not conducted.