The BARN (Bringing Awareness Right Now) Farmer Dinner Theater: Piloting a Novel Community Mental Health and...

Farmers and rural residents face serious mental health risks due to occupational hazards, stress, and limited access to mental health services. In response, researchers launched and evaluated the BARN (Bringing Awareness Right Now) Farmer Dinner Theater, an innovative program aimed at addressing mental health challenges and preventing suicide in rural counties of Kentucky. BARN combines community engagement, performance arts, and evidence-based strategies to not only raise awareness but to take action to promote positive behavioral intentions regarding mental health issues and suicide prevention.

BARN featured a two-day youth camp focused on education and skills related to mental health and well-being, stress management, and suicide prevention. Youth camp participants created culturally relevant dinner theater scripts that included mental health themes, culminating in a performance of their work. To evaluate the program's impact, we used a quasi-experimental design with a retrospective pre-post survey. At the end of the camp and dinner theater, participants completed a survey asking them to rate their knowledge and behaviors as they remembered them before and after the program.

Fifteen youth participated in the camp, and 106 community members attended the dinner theater. Improvements among participants were observed across several survey items, including understanding mental health challenges, recognizing stress, and adopting self-care and coping strategies. Dinner theater participants consequently reported an increased intent to practice self-care and engage in suicide prevention behaviors. Feedback from the dinner theater underscored the importance of addressing mental health and suicide collaboratively while emphasizing the need for open dialogue and support in the community.

The BARN Farmer Dinner Theater program was designed to address mental health challenges and suicide prevention in rural communities by fostering participatory and culturally sensitive discussions. The program approach empowered participants to see mental health as a community responsibility, reducing stigma. The program's design aligns with findings highlighting the importance of interactive, culturally tailored interventions in rural settings. The study supports expanding the BARN program with trusted organizations like Cooperative Extension Services as facilitators. Future research should evaluate long-term outcomes, including behavioral change and community resilience, to improve the program's impact and sustainability.