Background:
We have previously presented the co-design model of care for ‘The Luminos Project’ a 4-night, 5-day residential stay for young people (16-24 years) experiencing suicide thoughts and behaviours in metropolitan Perth. The resulting model-of-care has been implemented and is currently being evaluated as an innovative and preventative approach to youth suicide. The Luminos Project leverages staff and volunteers with lived experience to build trust and foster connection with young people. They utilise intentional peer support to explore feelings of suicide and train young people DBT skills.
Methodology:
Young people who stay at Luminos are invited to participate in a longitudinal evaluation investigating suicidal ideation, psychological distress, physical health and psycho-social outcomes. The K-10, AQoL-8D and the CSSR-S are administered at 4 time-points: upon arrival at Luminos, and 1-week, 3-months and 6-months post stay. Additionally, semi-structured interviews are conducted with participants to capture qualitative insights on their experiences of their stay at Luminos and how they have managed since leaving. We also collect rich demographic data about participants.
We plan to analyse changes in scores on the K-10, AQoL-8D and CSSR-S from baseline to follow-up to examine the impact of Luminos on young people’s wellbeing across both the short- and medium-term. To analyse the semi-structured interview, a thematic analysis will be conducted to examine themes such as service experience, impact of staff, wellbeing outcomes (e.g., hope for the future) and the exiting process. These finding will be presented.
Conclusion:
The Luminos project is an innovative and evidence-based intervention that offers an alternative approach to suicide prevention. Luminos provides young people an opportunity to speak about their suicidality in a non-stigmatising, non-clinical space without time restrictions. Using a peer-based model that builds connection, trust, reciprocity, and modelling behaviours of lived experience, Luminos is a promising alternative to suicide prevention. This evaluation is a critical component to potentially replicating similar suicide prevention models in other regions to contribute to existing efforts to reduce youth suicide rates.