New agency needed to tackle high suicide rate

A CLARE councillor has called for a well-funded national agency-led campaign to challenge the growing number of suicides nationally.

More than 500 people took their own lives in Ireland last year and a Clare councillor believes it’s time for the State to face up to the growing problem.

Councillor Tom McNamara said in recent years road deaths had been tackled with quite a bit of success but nobody seems to want to challenge the unacceptably high rate of suicide.

The campaign run by the Road Safety Authority had shown the reducing deaths on the road was achievable, he said, and called for an agency similar to the RSA to be put in place to challenge the high number of suicides.

The Fianna Fáil councillor was responding to a call by Councillor Mary Howard for councillors and staff to take part in a safeTALK workshop to help to address suicide in communities.

Noting World Suicide Prevention Day is observed annually on September 10, she said they should take the opportunity to receive the training which may be of benefit to people they are talking to and working with.

“SafeTALK is a half day training programme that prepares participants to identify persons with thoughts of suicide and connect them to suicide first aid resources,” she explained.

“These specific skills are called suicide alertness and are taught with the expectation that the person learning them will use them to help reduce suicide risk in their communities.

“Following a safeTALK workshop, you will be more willing and able to perform an important helping role for persons with thoughts of suicide and would be in a position to ask someone if they are feeling suicidal and to put them in touch with someone who could help them” she added.

Councillor PJ Ryan said the training would help them to understand the intentions of troubled individuals and if it would help to save one life, it would be worthwhile. He also suggested that Pieta House should be invited to address the council.