Suicide Prevention Awareness Month Video Contest Winners Announced

MILLINGTON, Tenn. (NNS) -- Suicide Prevention Awareness Month concluded with the announcement of the commands that were selected as having the best entries to the Suicide Prevention Public Service Announcement Contest Sept. 28.

"We received 19 entries from units ranging from small Seabee Units, Navy hospitals and clinics, Navy Operational Support Centers (NOSC), Coalition for Sailors against Destructive Decisions (CSADD) chapters and big deck afloat units. They were filmed with everything from professional cameras to Smartphones," said Capt. Kurt Scott, director, Navy Behavioral Health. "We were very impressed with both their creativity and desire to reach out to their shipmates and make a difference."

Judging was conducted based on the quality of the video production, creativity and message. In the end three entries were selected rather than just one for uniquely emphasizing risk factors while encouraging bystander intervention: USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) for their representation of the buildup of overwhelming stress and anxiety and the demonstration of intervention; NOSC San Antonio which produced its entry with a smartphone; and Naval Medical Center San Diego CSADD chapter San Diego for sheer creativity.

"It was hard to select just one winner after viewing all of the entries," Scott said. "So many entries were on message and creative, and it was obvious how much time and effort these Sailors put into producing quality products. So in the end, we picked three."

The three public service announcements will air on Direct to Sailor television aboard Navy ships, reaching an estimated Navy and Marine Corps audience of 145,000 daily on 192 American ships at sea. They will also be made available to the American Forces Network for their overseas availabilities and the Pentagon Channel.

The contest rules directed participants to design a public service announcement with an emphasis on promoting Suicide Prevention as an All Hands Evolution. They were to be peer-to-peer messages from a Sailor's point-of-view to promote awareness of suicide warning signs and bystander intervention, while advocating help-seeking behavior among viewers. Each entry was to convey a clear suicide awareness or prevention message using one of this year's core program themes: "It's Okay to Speak up When You're Down" or "Life is Worth Living." While creatively emphasizing one or both of these messages, an element of ACT (Ask Care Treat) needed to be referenced.

"This contest showed us that Sailors are passionate about the simple acts of kindness that are the first step to ACT," said Scott. "All three of the selected videos touched on the core program themes. Suicide Prevention Awareness Month recognizes the program goals in September but the efforts to reach out and build resilience go on all year."

To view the winning entries, visit www.navynavstress.com.

For more information about the Suicide Prevention Public Service Announcement Contest, reference NAVADMIN 218/12.

For more information about suicide prevention and awareness visit www.suicide.navy.mil.

For more news from Navy Personnel Command, visit www.navy.mil/local/npc/.