Assessing the feasibility of delivering safeTALK to young people experiencing homelessness

Background: Young Australians experiencing homelessness are at elevated risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors. LivingWorks’ safeTALK training teaches people the necessary skills for responding to someone thinking of suicide, including how to connect them with further support.Aims: To evaluate the feasibility of delivering safeTALK training to young people with experience of homelessness.Method: Eleven young people aged 16–25 participated in the safeTALK training. Participants completed questionnaires immediately pre- and post-training, and 3-months post-training. Four participants completed the questionnaires at all three timepoints and five completed a follow-up telephone interview.Results: All participants felt more confident helping someone at risk of suicide after completing the safeTALK training. However, ethical and procedural requirements meant that we were unable to organise more than one training session.Limitations: Ethical requirements around suicide risk, as well as LivingWorks requiring a minimum group size, were significant limitations when attempting to organise training sessions with this population.Conclusion: While there is a demand for peer-based, gatekeeper suicide interventions, as well as preliminary evidence that safeTALK improves confidence, safeTALK as it is currently delivered was not a feasible training program for this population. Tailored training for young people experiencing homelessness should be considered as an alternative.