Oregon Administrative Rules
Chapter 309 - OREGON HEALTH AUTHORITY, HEALTH SYSTEMS DIVISION: BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES
Division 27 - Youth Suicide Communication and Post-Intervention Plan
Section 309-027-0020 - Definitions

(1) "Authority" means the Oregon Health Authority (OHA).

(2) "Authority's Plan" means the Authority's Youth Suicide Communication and Postvention Plan developed to implement SB 561 codified as ORS 418.735.

(3) "Communication Protocol" means the plan identifying information-sharing pathways to improve notifications and information-sharing regarding a suspected youth suicide between the LMHA and community partners, and the individuals within those entities to communicate or receive communications.

(4) "Community partners" includes local individuals, entities, and organizations including medical examiners, public school districts, public universities, private post-secondary institutions of education, or any facility or organization that provides services or resources to runaway or homeless youth.

(5) "Coordinator" means the Authority's Youth Suicide Prevention Policy Coordinator or their designee.

(6) "Decedent" means an individual 24 years of age or younger who is no longer living as reported by a medical examiner or designee.

(7) "Designated Reporter" means the individual designated by the primary LMHA to report a suspected youth suicide to the Oregon Health Authority.

(8) "LMHA" means a Local Mental Health Authority as defined in ORS 430.630.

(9) "Medical examiner" has the same meaning given that term in ORS 146.003(10) or a physician appointed as provided by ORS 146.003 to 146.189 to investigate and certify the cause and manner of deaths requiring investigation, including the State Medical Examiner.

(10) "Post-Intervention" or "Postvention" means the activities implemented after a suspected youth suicide, including support for the bereaved family, friends, professionals, peers and those with geographic, social or social media ties to the decedent. "Post-intervention and "postvention" are used interchangeably. In order to meet the needs of those bereaved by a suicide, and to reduce the risk of suicide contagion "postvention" includes:

(11) "Primary LMHA" means the LMHA serving the county where the suspected youth suicide occurred.

(12) "Response Protocol" means the plan identifying the roles, responsibilities and actions of the LMHA and community partners that are activated in response to a suspected youth suicide.

(13) "Suicide Contagion" means the exposure to the suicide or suicidal behavior of one or more individuals that influences others to engage in suicidal behavior, including to attempt or complete suicide.

(14) "Suspected Youth Suicide" means a death of an individual 24 years of age or younger reported by a medical examiner or designee that is believed to have been caused by self-directed injurious behavior with an intent to die as a result of the behavior.

(15) "Traumatic Death" means a death that is sudden, unanticipated, violent, mutilating or destructive, random and/or preventable, involves multiple deaths, or one in which the mourner has a personal encounter with death. It may be caused by an accident, homicide, suicide or death in war.

(16) "Youth-serving entity" refers to any public school district, public university listed in ORS 352.002, private post-secondary institution of education, any facility that provides services or resources to runaway or homeless youth, the juvenile department, Oregon Youth Authority, community developmental disabilities programs, local child welfare and self-sufficiency agencies, local substance use disorder programs, organizations serving transitional-aged youth or any other organization or individual identified by the local mental health authority as necessary to receive notice to preserve public health.