Health problems among the American Indians have been of major concern to the U.S. Public Health Service for some time. As major inroads are now being made into infectious diseases, maternal and child health, and many chronic illnesses, the problems of the mental health of Indians come into a more central focus. Within the framework of mental health problems, suicide looms as one of the more tragic outcomes of psychological anguish. At the same time, it is one of the most preventable and unnecessary modes of death. The long history of social and cultural turmoil that has confronted the American Indian has created unique problems, and one of the outcomes is an increase in suicide and other self-destructive behavior. It was within this context that the National Institute of Mental Health and the Division of Indian Health (now Indian Health Service) worked cooperatively to sponsor the workshops at which the following papers (reproduced in the document) were presented: "Suicide in the United States,""Self-Destructive Behavior in Adolescents and Adults: Similarities and Differences,""Two Types of Suicidal Behavior,""Planning for Suicide Prevention,""Mental Health Services in a Sparsely Populated Area: A Necessary Complement to a Suicide Prevention Program,""Suicide and Self-Destructive Behavior in the Oglala Sioux: Some Clinical Aspects and Community Approaches," and "Suicide and Self-Destructive Behavior on the Cheyenne River Reservation." (BO)