The APA Alliance’s national high school essay contest, now in its second year, continues to take America by storm—and not least in southern California, where members of the APA Alliance and San Diego Psychiatric Society have partnered on a truly effective project.

The essay contest has not only impressed upon San Diego’s young people, but on educators as well, that teen suicide can be prevented, that their efforts in this area can make a difference, and that area psychiatrists are eager to help them in their efforts.

Moreover, the contest has gotten the San Diego police, the press, businesses, a trauma specialist, and other members of the San Diego community involved in combating teen suicide.

Last May the San Diego Psychiatric Society agreed to cosponsor with the Friends of the San Diego Psychiatric Society (a chapter of the APA Alliance) the 1999-2000 APA Alliance (APAA) national high school essay contest. The Friends subsequently voted to seek endorsements from several medical societies, the PTA, and other like-minded nonprofit organizations as the first strategy for establishing solid community support. The Friends then networked with these groups to identify key people in the San Diego city school hierarchy who would be willing to manage the essay contest in the city schools. Further, the Friends managed to get the essay contest established in 22 alternative, private, and public high schools throughout San Diego County and sought funding for the contest from various San Diego businesses.

Last September Alicia Muñoz, president of the Friends, along with Ken Khoury, M.D., president of the San Diego Psychiatric Society, launched the contest in the San Diego public schools. Other Friends members followed suit in county, alternative, charter, and private schools. Several members of the San Diego Psychiatric Society visited several schools and informally discussed teen suicide with students.

Retired senior educators from the Retired Senior Volunteer Program reviewed all the essays to select the top 20 percent. Winning essays from these 20 percent were then picked by community leaders in the San Diego area who agreed to serve as judges—television news anchors, radio health reporters, local newspaper reporters, juvenile court judges, superior court judges, psychiatrists, and legislators.

The February 4 awards luncheon for the winners was a large and highly successful affair. The top three winners were Leanne Dumais of Buena High School in Ventura, Calif.; Jennifer Strach of Mira Mesa High School in San Diego; and Lindsay Crampton, also of Mira Mesa High School.

Although a number of educators had initially been reluctant to get involved with an essay contest that had to do with teen suicide, 217 attended the luncheon.

"Educators were delighted to get to know local psychiatrists," said Muñoz, who is the wife of immediate past APA President Rodrigo Muñoz, M.D., "and see a real grass-roots effort to take care of their students."

Khoury and Gabrielle Shapiro, M.D., also of the San Diego Psychiatric Society, cohosted the APA Suicide Prevention TV spot, which was well received. Lt. Jim Collins of the San Diego Police Department reported, on the basis of recent evidence, that 10 of the 11 suicides that occurred among youths in San Diego County during 1999 might have been prevented if family members or an agency had intervened. Risk factors included access to firearms, ineffective or lack of parental guidance and/or support, drug/alcohol use, academic failure, and unhealthy or violent interpersonal relationships.

Michael Sise, M.D., medical director of trauma services in San Diego, shared views of the trauma room when lifesaving treatment involved teens who attempted suicide. Two television stations covered the event, and highlights were broadcast throughout the following weekend.

But the success of the San Diego essay contest didn’t end on February 4. Two San Diego students placed second and third in the state essay competition and attended the awards ceremony at the state capitol on March 16, as did a number of teachers from the San Diego city schools.

Simply put, "this contest is a winner," Muñoz exclaimed. In addition to the educational effectiveness of the contest, it has made valuable inroads in preventing teen suicide. "I can’t tell you how much this effort has paid off in good will throughout the county," she said.