Impact Acceleration Funding bid success for Suicide Postvention and Social Media (Jo Bell with Humber Coast and Vale Suicide Prevention Board).

Dr Jo Bell, in partnership with Humber Coast and Vale Suicide Prevention Board, has secured funding to carry out a series of knowledge exchange workshops across the Humber Coast and Vale (HCV) region (Hull, Scunthorpe, York, Scarborough). The workshops will bring together professionals and practitioners who work in services supporting those who are affected by suicide in the HCV area (e.g, emergency responders, mental health professionals, pastoral care providers from schools, colleges and Universities, bereavement services, 3rd sector and voluntary organisations). The objectives are to share our research-based knowledge of suicide bereavement and the scope, impact and implications of social media practices in the aftermath of a suicide, and to undertake further research in this area in order to inform best practice. By the end of each workshop, attendees will take away new evidence-based knowledge of:

• The uniqueness of suicide bereavement
• Harmful and protective effects of social media use in aftermath of a suicide: how social media use can be harnessed to manage trauma, alleviate grief and reach those who need support
• Recommendations and guidance for practice: how to mitigate against harmful effects and promote positive effects.

Participants will be invited to give feedback via an online survey and end-of-project evaluation workshop. The evaluation activities will provide an opportunity to measure the impact of workshop attendance on participants’ knowledge and practice. We will also conduct one-to-one interviews after the evaluation in order to gain new data on suicide bereavement and social media use.

If you would like to find out more, or would like to attend one of the workshops, please contact Dr Jo Bell.