The University of Manitoba campuses are located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Ojibwe-Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Métis. More
Circumpolar Suicide Prevention
Guidelines/Strategies
Indigenous Guidelines
Government of Nunavut. Inuusivut Anninaqtuq Action Plan 2017-2022. 2023. (French, Inuktitut)
Government of Canada. National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy (NAYSPS) Program Framework. Ottawa: Health Canada: 2013.
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami.National Inuit Suicide Prevention Strategy. 2016. (Inuktitut, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut)
Mental Health Innovation. Rising Sun Toolkit. 2018.
Nunavut Dept of Health. Nunavut Suicide Prevention Strategy. 2010. (Inuktitut, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut)
Nunavut Dept of Health. Nunavut Suicide Prevention Strategy Action Plan 2011-2014. 2011. (Inuktitut, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut)
Task Group on Mental Wellness. Life promotion suicide prevention: Recommendations on supporting mental wellness for First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022.
Tunngavik. Resiliency Within: An action plan for suicide prevention in Nunavut 2016/17. 2016. (Inuktitut, Innuinaqtun)
White J, et al. Promising Strategies: Aboriginal Youth: A Manual of Promising Suicide Prevention Strategies. Calgary: Centre for Suicide; 2007.
General Guidelines
Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care. Recommendation on instrument-based screening for depression during pregnancy and the postpartum period. CMAJ. 2022;194(28):E981-E989.
Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care. Recommendations on screening for depression in adults. CMAJ. 2013;185(9):775-782.
Gaebel W, et al. EPA guidance on building trust in mental health services. Eur Psychiatry. 2014;29(2):83-100.
Government of Canada. The national suicide prevention action plan (2024 to 2027). 2024.
Government of Canada. Working together to prevent suicide in Canada: the federal framework for suicide prevention. 2016.
Nunavut Tunngavik. Media Guidelines for Reporting on Suicide. 2017.
Perlman C. et al. Suicide risk assessment inventory: a resource guide for Canadian health care organizations. Toronto: Canadian Institute for Patient Safety; 2011.
Walter H, et al. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Assessment and Treatment of Children and Adolescents With Major and Persistent Depressive Disorders. Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 2022.
Winnipeg Suicide Prevention Network. A guide for early responders supporting survivors bereaved by suicide. 2011.
White J. Preventing Youth Suicide Guide for Practitioners. Victoria: British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development; 2016.
Traditional Knowledge
Systematic Reviews
Moses C, et al. Systematic review of interventions addressing suicide among Indigenous adults and reporting Indigenous-specific content and involvement in the interventions. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples. 2022;18(3).
Sjoblom E, et al. Centering Indigenous knowledge in suicide prevention: a critical scoping review. BMC Public Health. 2022;22(1):2377.
Yu Z, et al. Characteristics of Indigenous healing strategies in Canada: A scoping review. JBI Evidence Synthesis. 2020;18(12):2512-2555. (request full-text)
Articles
Beaudoin V, et al. Protective Factors in the Inuit Population of Nunavut: A Comparative Study of People Who Died by Suicide, People Who Attempted Suicide, and People Who Never Attempted Suicide. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2018;144(15).
Chai L. Disability and suicidal ideation among Indigenous adults in Canada: Cultural resources as contingencies. Arch Suicide Res. 2023;13:1-19. (request full-text)
Cianconi P, et al. Mental health issues among Indigenous communities and the role of traditional medicine. Int J Soc Psychiatry. 2019;65(4):289-299.
Collings P, et al. An Ethnographic Model of Stress and Stress Management in Two Canadian Inuit Communities. Journal of Cross-Cultural sychology. 54(3).
Frazer H, et al. Are sport and traditional Inuit games identified as tools in current Inuit suicide prevention strategies?: A content analysis. International Journal of Circumpolar Health. 2023;82(1).
Healey G, et al. The eight ujarait (rocks) model: Supporting Inuit adolescent mental health with an intervention model based on Inuit ways of knowing. International Journal of Indigenous Health. 2016;11(1):92-110.
Ineese-Nash N, et al. Wiingushk Okaadenige (Sweetgrass Braid): A Braided Approach to Indigenous Youth Mental Health Support during COVID-19. International Journal of Indigenous Health. 2022;17(1).
Korhomene M. Suicide prevention: Inuit traditional practice that encouraged resilience and coping. National Aboriginal Health Organization:Ottawa. 2006.
Land-Based
Systematic Reviews
Middleton J, et al. Indigenous mental health in a changing climate: A systematic scoping review of the global literature. Environmental Research Letters. 2020;15(5).
Articles
Anslos J, et al. A question of justice: Critically researching suicide with Indigenous studies of affect, biosociality, and land-based relations. Health: An Interdisciplinary Journal for the Social Study of Health, Illness and Medicine. 2021;26(1).
Ansloos J, et al. Is Suicide a Water Justice Issue? Investigating Long-Term Drinking Water Advisories and Suicide in First Nations in Canada. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health. 2023; 20(5):4045.
Bradette-Laplante M, et al. Food insecurity and psychological distress in Inuit adolescents of Nunavik. Public Health Nutrition. 2020;23(14):2615-2625.
MacDonald J, et al. Protective factors for mental health and well-being in a changing climate: Perspectives from Inuit youth in Nunatsiavut, Labrador. Soc Sci Med. 2015;141:133-41.
Middleton J, et al. Temperature and place associations with Inuit mental health in the context of climate change. Environmental Research. 2021;198.
Redvers N. An Aajiiqatigiingniq (consensus) process to develop an evaluation tool for health and wellness outcomes of land-based programs in the Canadian North. Journal of Indigenous Wellbeing. 2022; 6(3).
Redvers N. Urban land-based healing: A northern intervention strategy. International Journal of Indigenous Health. 2020;16(2).
Redvers J. “The land is a healer”: Perspectives on land-based healing from Indigenous practitioners in northern Canada. International Journal of Indigenous Health. 2020;15(1):90-107.
Redvers N, et al. Urban land-based healing: A northern intervention strategy. International Journal of Indigenous Health. 2021;16(2):322-337.
Systematic Reviews
Affleck W, et al. Suicides in Nunavik: a life course study. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2021;80(1):1880143.
Anang P, et al. Building on strengths in Naujaat: the process of engaging Inuit youth in suicide prevention. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2019;78(2):1508321.
Bennett K, et al. A Youth Suicide Prevention Plan for Canada: A Systematic Review of Reviews. Can J Psychiatry. 2015;60(6):245-57.
Bhattacharjee R, et al. What does ‘holism’ mean in Indigenous mental health?. UWOMJ. 2017;86(2):25-27.
Carrier L, et al. Protective and resilience factors to promote mental health among Indigenous youth in Canada: a scoping review protocol. BMJ Open. 2021;12(1).
Collins P, et al. RISING SUN: Prioritized outcomes for suicide prevention in the Arctic. Psychiatr Serv. 2019;70(2):152-155.
Graham S, et al. Mental health interventions for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada: A systematic review. The International Indigenous Policy Journal. 2021;12(2)
Hayward A, et al. A review of health and wellness studies involving Inuit of Manitoba and Nunavut. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2020;79(1).
Hatcher S, et al. Preventing suicide in Indigenous communities. Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2017;30(1):21-25.
Owais S, et al. Systematic Review and Meta-analysis: First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Youth Mental Health. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2022;61(10):1227-1250.
Pollock N, et al. Tracking progress in suicide prevention in Indigenous communities: a challenge for public health surveillance in Canada. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(1):1320.
Redvers J, et al. A scoping review of Indigenous suicide prevention in circumpolar regions. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2015;74:27509.
Robinson J, et al. What works in youth suicide prevention? A systematic review and meta-analysis. EClinicalMedicine. 2018;4-5:52-91.
Seidler I, et al. A systematic review on risk and protective factors for suicide and suicidal behaviour among Greenland Inuit. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2023;82(1).
Sjoblom E, et al. Centering Indigenous knowledge in suicide prevention: a critical scoping review. BMC Public Health. 2022;22(1):2377.
Stack S, Cao L. Social integration and Indigenous suicidality. Arch Suicide Res. 2020;24(sup1):86-101. (request full-text)
Toombs E, et al. A systematic review of electronic mental health interventions for Indigenous youth: Results and recommendations. J Telecare. 2021;9:539-552.
Trout L, et al. Arctic suicide, social medicine, and the purview of care in global mental health. Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):77-89.
Venugopa J, et al. A scoping review of evaluated Indigenous community-based mental wellness initiatives. 2021;21(1).
Articles
Affleck W, et al. Suicide amongst the Inuit of Nunavut: An exploration of life trajectories. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(6):1812.
Affleck W, et al. Suicides in Nunavik: A life course study. International Journal of Circumpolar Health. 2021;80(1).
Anang P, et al. Building on strengths in Naujaat: the process of engaging Inuit youth in suicide prevention. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2019;78(2):1508321.
Anang P, et al. Learning to Fail Better: Reflections on the Challenges and Risks of Community-Based Participatory Mental Health Research With Inuit Youth in Nunavut. Frontiers in Public Health. 2021;9.
Auclair G, et al. Mental health in Inuit youth from Nunavik: Clinical considerations on a transcultural, interdisciplinary, community-oriented approach. J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2012;1(2):124-126.
Blakney S. Connections to the land : The politics of health and wellbeing in Arviat Nunavut. 2009.
Bohr Y, et al. Evaluating the Utility of a Psychoeducational Serious Game (SPARX) in Protecting Inuit Youth From Depression: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Serious Games. 2023.
Boksa P, et al. Demographic and Clinical Presentations of Youth using Enhanced Mental Health Services in Six Indigenous Communities from the ACCESS Open Minds Network. Can J Psychiatry. 2022;67(3):179-191.
Brown K, et al. How can mobile applications support suicide prevention gatekeepers in Australian Indigenous communities? Soc Sci Med. 2020;258:113015.
Chachamovich E, et al. Suicide among Inuit: Results from a large, epidemiologically representative follow-back study in Nunavut. Can J Psychiatry. 2015;60(6):268-275.
Crawford A. Project CREATeS: youth engagement in suicide prevention. Lancet.. 2019;394(10205:1222-1223. (request full-text)
Eggertson L. Nunavut's new suicide prevention strategy. CMAJ. 2016;188(7):e116.
Fraser S, et al. Exploring the potential roles of community-university partnerships in northern suicide prevention implementation research. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2020;79(1).
Fraser S, et al. Collaboration in mental healthcare for Indigenous children and youth: Using Actor-Network analyses to better understand dynamics, strengths, and ongoing challenges in collaboration. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. 2022. (request full-text)
Frazer H, et al. Are sport and traditional Inuit games identified as tools in current Inuit suicide prevention strategies?: A content analysis. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2023;82(1).
Gomez Cardona L, et al. Depression or resilience? A participatory study to identify an appropriate assessment tool with Kanien’kéha (Mohawk) and Inuit in Quebec. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. 2021;56:1891-1902. (request full-text)
Grande A, et al. Mental health interventions for suicide prevention among Indigenous adolescents: a systematic review protocol. BMJ. 2020;10(5):e034055.
Hordyk S, et al. No time to grieve: Inuit loss experiences and grief practices in Nunavik, Quebec. Transcultural Psychiatry. 2022.
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Promising practices in suicide prevention across Inuit Nunangat. 2019.
Johnston P, et al. Introduction to Social Services, Supports, and Well-Being in Arctic Canada and Beyond. American Review of Canadian Studies. 2022; 52(3):239-246.
Kral M. Suicide and Suicide Prevention among Inuit in Canada. Can J Psychiatry. 2016;61(11):688-695.
Kral M, et al. Tunngajuq : Stress and resilience among Inuit youth in Nunavut, Canada. Transcult Psychiatry. 2014;51(5):673-92.
Litwin L, et al. Reflections on SPARX, a self-administered e-intervention for depression, for Inuit youth in Nunavut. Journal of Rural Mental Health. 2023; 47(1):41-50. (request full-text)
Logie C, et al. Contextual factors associated with depression among Northern and Indigenous adolescents in the Northwest Territories, Canada. Global Mental Health. 2021;8:e22.
McVittie J, et al. Supporting Indigenous Child Suicide Prevention Within Classrooms in Canada: Implications for School Psychologists and Educators. Canadian Journal of School Psychology. 28(1).
Morris M. Comparative Analysis of Services for Canadian Inuit for Tuberculosis, Suicide Prevention, and Smoking Cessation: Common Themes and Underlying Issues. 2022; 52(3):342-362. (request full-text)
Newell S, et al. Cultural continuity and Inuit health in Arctic Canada. Epidemiology & Community Health. 2020;74(1). (request full-text)
Poliakova N, et al. Sociocultural factors in relation to mental health within Inuit population of Nunavik. Can J Public Health. 2024;115(Suppl 1):83-95..
Pollock N, et al. Global goals and suicide prevention in the Circumpolar North. Indian J Psychiatry. 2020.
Pollock N, et al. Global incidence of suicide among Indigenous peoples: a systematic review. BMC Med. 2018;16(1):145.
Pollock N, et al. Tracking progress in suicide prevention in Indigenous communities: a challenge for public health surveillance in Canada. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(1):1320.
Seidler I, et al. Time trends and geographical patterns in suicide among Greenland Inuit. BMC Psychiatry. 2023;23(1):187.
Snnow K, et al. Opportunity for Aajiiqatigiingniq with Qamanittuaq youth: an examination of the factors impacting identity development and wellness. Education in the North. 2021;28(1):8-26.
Stack S, Cao L. Social integration and Indigenous suicidality. Archives of Suicide Research. 2020;24(sup1):86-101. (request full-text)
Trout L, et al. Arctic suicide, social medicine, and the purview of care in global mental health. Health Hum Rights. 2020;22(1):77-89.
Upfold C, Chaimowitz G. Forensic psychiatry services in Nunavut. International Journal of Circumpolar Health. 2021;80(1).
Vranac H, et al. A guided application of the role paper Suicide Prevention in Occupational Therapy. Occupational Therapy Now. 2021;23(6):7-10.(request full-text)
Wexler L, et al. Promoting community conversations about research to end suicide: learning and behavioural outcomes of a training-of-trainers model to facilitate grassroots community health education to address Indigenous youth suicide prevention. Int J Circumpolar Health. 2017;76(1).
Zamparo J, et al. Echoes and reflections a discussion of best practices in Inuit mental health. Government of Nunavut Task Force on Mental Health. 2005.
Books
Kral M. The return of the sun: Suicide and reclamation among Inuit of Arctic Canada. 2019. Oxford University Press: New York.
Patient Resources
Ajunnginiq Centre. Resilience: Coping with Life's Problems Fact Sheet. (2008). (Inuktitut)
Arnakaq M. The Iceberg Healing Manual. (Inuktitut)
Kamatsiaqtut Nunavut Helpline. (Inuktitut)
NAHO. How can you improve your emotional health? (2010) (Inuktitut)
NAHO. Resilience: Overcoming Challenges and Moving on Positively. (2007) (Inuktitut)
NAHO. Suicide and two spirited people. (2012).
NAHO. Suicide Prevention: Inuit Traditional Practices that Encourage Resilience and Coping. (2006).
Qaujigiartiit. Child and Youth Mental Health and Wellness. (Inuktitut).
United For Life. Discussing suicide safely. 2021.
Kivalliq Library Services
Tel: 1-877-789-3804
Fax: (204) 789-3923
hsl_outreach@umanitoba.ca
Gail Matheson
Kivalliq Librarian, Outreach Services
gail.matheson@umanitoba.ca