Presenter Profile
Kristen Volz, MS
Connecticut Children's Hospital
kvolz@connecticutchildrens.org
Kristen Volz, MS is a Research Assistant 2 at Connecticut Children's Medical Center. She supports the suicide prevention efforts of Dr. Steven Rogers, which includes research, community outreach, and programs. In March of 2021, she completed her Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Gatekeeper Instructor certificate and has been actively providing this life saving training to team members and members of the Hartford community. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Science in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Connecticut. Kristen continued her studies at the University of Connecticut and earned her Master’s in Health Promotion Sciences, as well as a graduate certificate in Health Psychology.
Presentations
Suicide Prevention
Steven C. Rogers, MD, MS-CTR
Kristen Volz, MS
How to successfully develop a Youth Suicide Prevention Program in your emergency department... including a demonstration of Question, Persuade, and Refer Gatekeeper Training
Steve Rogers, MD, MS-CTR
Kristen Volz, MS
QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer – the 3 simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just like CPR, QPR is an emergency response to someone in crisis and can save lives. QPR is the most widely taught Gatekeeper training in the world. A gatekeeper is someone in a position to recognize a crisis and the warning signs that someone may be contemplating suicide. Gatekeepers can be anyone, but include parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, ministers, doctors, nurses, office supervisors, squad leaders, foremen, police officers, advisors, caseworkers, firefighters, and many others who are strategically positioned to recognize and refer someone at risk of suicide.
The first 20 participants will be eligible to participate in QPR and receive a booklet that contains all the material covered in the class, as well as a certificate of completion at no cost.
1. Recognize the common causes of suicidal behavior
2. Recognize the warning signs of suicide
3. Identify local and national resources to help themselves or someone in crisis
4. Recognize opportunities to bring suicide prevention training to clinical and non-clinical team members within your institution