The World Health Organization estimates that over 800,000 people die by suicide each year – that’s one person every 40 seconds. Suicide is the second leading cause of death in the 15-29 years age group in 2012 worldwide, the leading cause of death in working age men in the UK, and it is estimated that during 2012 for each adult who died of suicide there were over 20 others who made suicide attempts. This means as healthcare professionals we need to talk about suicide prevention as we do any other public health issue. 

Much more than numbers

Suicide prevention is much more than numbers. It’s about friends, families and lives. The tragic ripple effect means that there are many, many people who are affected by suicide and the pain it brings.  

‘Connect, communicate, care’ is the theme of the 2016 World Suicide Prevention Day (10 September). These three words are at the heart of suicide prevention. On Tuesday 6th September we'll be discussing the role of all healthcare professionals in connecting, communicating and caring about suicide.

Connect: Connecting with people bereaved by suicide or people with lived experience of suicidal behaviour is key to suicide prevention. As healthcare professionals we all need to be there for someone who has become disconnected and guide them to the support they need.

Communicate: Empowering healthcare professionals to confidently and effectively engage with people at risk of suicide has an important role to play in prevention efforts. We need to speak openly about suicide in order to dispel myths which surround it, being cautious that our messages are safely and sensitively portraying the subject.

Care: Governments and service providers need to prioritise suicide prevention, and we all need to lead a caring approach to suicide prevention, and make the effort and take time to care for ourselves and those around us – including our colleagues.

Finding support during the chat

This chat will be talking about suicide to raise awareness of suicide prevention and the role all healthcare professionals can play in this. We recognise that this is likely to be a very emotional topic for many people. You can mute @WeAHPs during the chat, and seek help from family,friends or support organisations. If you need to talk to someone, you can follow this link to find a helpline in your country. The same website has information if you are concerned about someone else.  The Samaritans website also has a range of information, including how to start a difficult conversation, or what to do if you’re concerned about a friend on Facebook.

Pre-chat resources

Here are some website links, blogs, videos and articles to have a look at before the chat:

• International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) including World Suicide Prevention Day
• Connecting with people –a Community Interest Company who provide free online resources and training 
• Breaking down the stigma of suicide ( 3 minute video)
• Suicide Prevention: Reaching Out and Saving Lives - #WeAHPs #wspd tweetchat 2015

Questions to think about before the chat:

• How confident do you feel talking about suicide?
• What are the barriers to talking about suicide?
• What is your profession’s role in suicide prevention?
• How can we respond if we think someone may be at risk of suicide?
• What action (big or small) can you do to help reach out to people in distress and potentially at risk of suicide?
• How can we look after ourselves as professional who may be supporting someone at risk of suicide?

About our hosts

Alys Cole King is Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist at the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board and the Director and Co-Founder of the Connecting with People Programme. Alys also sits on the All Party Parliamentary Group for Suicide and Self-harm Prevention.

Naomi McVey is a physiotherapist and Programme Manager for AHP Workforce in the North West. She has personal experience of the impact of suicide and suicide attempts through friends and family and with Alys has organised and hosted multi-professional tweetchats for world suicide prevention day for the past 3 years. Naomi was also member of the Professional Practice and Service delivery Committee that advised on the development of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy's suicide prevention briefing. 

We will also be supported throughout the tweetchat by CALL Helpline, Depression Hurts and Sue Sibbald who will be available to provide support to anyone who needs it during the tweetchat.