South Dakota

South Dakota’s suicide prevention activities are led by South Dakota Suicide Prevention, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the South Dakota Department of Social Services (DSS) that provides regional suicide data, best practice recommendations, community toolkits, information on statewide trainings, and guides on how to help individuals at-risk for suicide. In 2019 the Governor tasked state agencies with creating a state suicide prevention plan, prompting the South Dakota Departments of Health, Social Services, Education, Tribal Relations, and Agriculture, as well as the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Health Board to form a work group and develop a framework that included guiding principles, goals, objectives, and strategies based on a review of national strategies and the state’s previous suicide prevention efforts.

In the fall of 2019, stakeholders and the public provided input on the draft, which was then incorporated produce the final document and release the South Dakota Suicide Prevention State Plan 2020-2025. The workgroup has also since published regular reports, including the South Dakota Suicide Prevention Plan 2020 Priority Strategies, 2020 Priority Strategies Outcomes Report, 2021 Priority Strategies, 2022 Priority Strategies and the most recent 2023 Priority Strategies