Corewell Health suicide prevention program expands to colleges

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Since 2016, Corewell Health’s Blue Envelope program has been equipping administrators and staff with the tools to respond when someone expresses thoughts of suicide.

“It’s essentially like a crisis response protocol, where everyone is trained, everyone knows how to respond, and it brings the whole team together, unifying them so we all have a common language,” said Jody Sprague, Corewell Health’s program manager for school-based suicide prevention.

It’s a difficult conversation to have, but the code words “Blue Envelope” make it a little easier.

“Those are two code words that we use internally so that we can alert our colleagues that there’s a high-priority situation going on that we want to address right now,” Sprague explained. “So instead of me saying, ‘Hey, I’m concerned about the suicidal student or the suicidal patient,’ I could just say something simple like, ‘Could you get me some resources from that blue envelope?’ And then everyone knows that that’s a priority and our team will come together and help that student or that patient.”

The Blue Envelope program started as a way to better serve patients working through mental health challenges, but it became so successful that it expanded to Corewell employees, home services and schools.

“Whether you’re a principal or teacher or bus driver or a coach, everyone uses those same safe steps,” Sprague said.

To date, more than 16,000 staff members have been trained through the program, and Blue Envelope is in over 230 schools across 15 counties.

“That’s a big footprint in West Michigan that we get to do. So, 16,000 staff members are also community members who are learning how to respond. Not only are they more comfortable in their schools, but they can help their families, their nieces, their own children, their father-in-law. That makes a big difference in our community,” said Sprague.

Now, the program is going a step further, with Davenport University becoming the first to implement the program in post-secondary education.

“We all deal with our own struggles and we know that, especially with college students, mental health challenges can be a monumental thing,” said Joe Bishop, executive director of campus life at Davenport University. “Our students right now in college went through a pandemic in high school or in middle school, and maybe some financial challenges, some food challenges, and so there’s so much on their plate. And they need to have a community that backs them up.”

Bishop explained that the institution has made mental health a priority. Davenport opened a student wellness center in 2022 that provides free 24/7 counseling for students, and there are wellness resources that give employees access to counseling as well. A counseling master’s program was also launched this year.

“I think the stigma of counseling and going to counseling has reduced, especially with this generation, which is a great thing. So our students are feeling more comfortable reaching out for help, and we want to make sure that we provide that,” Bishop said.

The Blue Envelope program is another tool to do that. It operates the same as it would in the K-12 setting, but leaders with Davenport want every employee to go through the training.

“Faculty, dining services, senior leaders, advisors, career services, coaches,” said Keri Dutkiewicz, Davenport University’s director of faculty leaning with the Office of Performance Excellence. “We want them to go through the training, because who knows who might hear someone say something like, ‘You know, well, the world would be a better place if I wasn’t here.’ And we want to know when someone says that, not just to laugh nervously, pretend you didn’t hear it, but instead, really know to talk about it.”

It’s an opportunity to respond with care and compassion and create a sense of hope, not just for students but for everyone.

“The more people we have who invest the time and the energy to build our skills, build our knowledge and our understanding, the more we can create that sense of hope,” Dutkiewicz explained. “One thing that I love that we talk about in the training is that preventing suicide can be everyone’s responsibility.”

Corewell is working to continue to expand the program and is currently in conversations with Cornerstone University, Aquinas College, Grand Rapids Community College, Kendall College of Art and Design and Ferris State University.

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