Learning Objective:
Attendees can able to explain how LivingWorks Start impacts learners' confidence to connect those experiencing thoughts of suicide with appropriate further support; and how prior training and the recency of training influence changes in learner outcomes.
Background:
LivingWorks Start was developed to help learners recognise when someone may be thinking about suicide, respond empathetically, and connect individuals to appropriate resources. Like other community-based helper trainings, learners’ prior experiences and training recency may influence their outcomes. Our study analyses quality assurance data to explore how training history impacts changes in learners’ perceived confidence from pre- to post-training. We hypothesise that participants with less prior or more recent training will demonstrate the greatest improvements, while those with extensive or older training may show smaller changes.
Methods:
We analysed pre- and post-training survey data from 44,003 participants who completed LivingWorks Start between December 2022 and December 2024. Both surveys asked the same four questions rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree) to assess confidence in recognising signs someone maybe having thoughts of suicide, engaging in conversations, providing help, and knowing resources. Sub-analyses examined how prior training and experience influenced results.
Results:
Overall, 79.2% of participants experienced improvement in confidence after completing the online training. Average confidence score increased from 3.11 to 3.69, reflecting an 18.6% improvement (p < 0.05). This increase was consistent across all four outcomes.
When looking at how prior training experience impacts confidence, participants with no prior training saw the greatest improvement in confidence, with a 14% higher average gain across all outcomes compared to those with more hours of prior training. Examining recency of training, participants with no previous training saw the greatest improvement in confidence, with a 10% higher average gain across all outcomes compared to those receiving training within the last year. Even those with recent or extensive training showed meaningful improvements with an average increase of 9.81% across all outcomes.
Discussion:
The overall efficacy of LivingWorks Start online training is demonstrated by the significant, consistent improvements across all four key outcomes, indicating that the program adds value regardless of prior training. While the largest gains were among those with no prior training, participants with previous or recent training also benefited. These findings suggest that the program is effective at enhancing confidence across all levels of experience and that ongoing training with LivingWorks Start can further enhance confidence in suicide prevention skills.