The University of Washington is among the first U.S. colleges to require student athletes, coaches and athletic staff to undergo training to become familiar with suicidality and strategies to address it directly.
The aim is to relieve feelings of pressure and depression that have grown markedly among college athletes during the past 20 years. This trend has led the NCAA to direct member schools to be more supportive of student athletes’ mental health.
The UW’s program is a collaboration of the School of Medicine, UW Athletics and Forefront Suicide Prevention, a center in the School of Social Work.
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