# Engaging Youth, Caregivers, and Teachers for Suicide Prevention:  Developing and Implementing a Multi-Level Intervention in Rural China

> **NIH NIH R34** · BROWN UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $220,341

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
This collaborative project between Brown University and Beijing Normal University responds to RFA-MH-23-260
by developing and testing a multi-level intervention program (“Together We Can”) to engage adolescents (age
12-19), school teachers, and caregivers in suicide prevention in rural China. Suicide has become the top 1
leading cause of death among adolescents in China. In particular, adolescents in rural China – a population
exposed to chronic poverty and resource deprivation – are at high risk of suicide. There is a lack of mental health
literacy while stigma against suicide and seeking professional psychological help runs deep in rural China. No
training exists for teachers and caregivers to recognize signs of suicide risk, normalize conversations related to
mental health, and refer at-risk adolescents to resources. Further, the current psychological education in China
lacks teaching applicable coping and help-seeking skills and stigma reduction on mental health and suicide.
There is an urgent need to address this public health crisis in school settings and develop interventions that
engage adolescents, teachers, and caregivers in the rural, low-resource context. Our research team has taken
the first step to collectively developed and test a teacher-focused gatekeeper program (“Life Gatekeeper”) for
teachers in rural China, with promising findings from a recent RCT with teachers. Building on our prior work and
leveraging our existing relationships with schools in rural Guangdong, we aim to build the next building blocks of
a universal intervention (“Together We Can”) by engaging adolescents (via socioemotional learning), teachers
(via the existing “Life Gatekeeper” program) and caregivers (via adapting the “Life Gatekeepers” for caregivers).
We will also incorporate technology-mediated support via existing mobile platforms to maximize scalability. By
developing a low-cost, multi-level suicide prevention program and establishing a protocol with community-
centered and implementation perspectives, the “Together We Can” program has the potential to achieve
scalability and sustainability, if proven to be efficacious. The aims of this early phase, clinical project include (1)
to conduct focus groups with caregivers, school teachers, and individual interviews with adolescents on needs
related to suicide prevention on various levels, preferred intervention content, and implementation strategies for
successful delivery, (2) to prepare the RCT phase by creating the multi-level “Together We Can” program,
forming an implementation resource team, and conducting workshops and staff training, and (3) to evaluate the
feasibility, acceptability, safety, and preliminary effects of the Together We Can program via a randomized
controlled trial (RCT) with two schools in rural China (intervention vs. usual care). We will conduct assessment
at baseline, 4-months, and 8-months follow-ups. We will also collect data on barriers and facilitators to
imp...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10872734
- **Project number:** 1R34MH136243-01
- **Recipient organization:** BROWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** DanHua Lin
- **Activity code:** R34 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $220,341
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-07-01 → 2027-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10872734

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10872734, Engaging Youth, Caregivers, and Teachers for Suicide Prevention:  Developing and Implementing a Multi-Level Intervention in Rural China (1R34MH136243-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10872734. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*