A member of Aberdeenshire council’s Suicide Prevention Team has said reducing stigma around suicide is “everybody’s business”.
Speaking to The Press and Journal for World Mental Health Day on Tuesday, Kate Humphrey said public attitudes to suicide have improved over the past few years but more needs to be done.
Her call comes partly from personal experience.
“I’ve lost somebody to suicide,” said Kate, who is originally from Inverness and lives in Aberdeen. “I know what a tragedy that is.”
But she called on all members of society to be better aware of depression, anxiety and other causes of suicide and help people who are thinking of taking their own lives.
“I firmly believe that everybody can help around suicide and suicide prevention,” Kate added.
“It’s not something that should sit behind closed doors, or only be discussed in the confines of a GPs office. It’s a whole-society problem.”
Delivering ‘mental health first aid’
Kate, 43, spent 18 years as a social worker before moving to the Suicide Prevention Team, which is part of Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership.
For five years, she managed the Suicide Prevention Delivery Group, which helps co-ordinate community efforts with agencies including the Police, Public Health Scotland and NHS Grampian, alongside local mental health teams.
To continue her work, Kate recently qualified as a trainer for a suicide prevention course.
She described the ASIST course, which stands for Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training, as “mental health first aid” that helps people care for anyone with suicidal thoughts.
“I previously did the course and I loved the training,” Kate said. “It talks a lot about respect for life and living, and for me that was really powerful.
“I now delivers this training to local communities, and we’re fortunate in the north-east that we have a great number of ASIST trainers.”
According to Kate, the course helps to destigmatise suicide within society. It is an aim she endorses.
“People have a fear that they’ll say the wrong thing,” Kate said of talking to people with suicidal thoughts.
“They’re concerned that they’ll get it wrong, and they’ll make it worse. So people just shy away from it.
“What I love about this course is it gives people that confidence to have that conversation to reach out to somebody.
“That’s the thing about suicide prevention work, it is a whole system approach. It can’t just sit with local authorities, it needs to be the whole society coming together.”
Attitudes to suicide improving in Aberdeenshire
Last year, suicide numbers across Scotland increased slightly, with 762 probable deaths, according to figures published last month by National Records of Scotland.
However, Kate said attitudes in the country are improving and younger people are more comfortable talking about suicide.
“I think society’s attitude is changing, which is positive,” she said. “I think more people are starting to feel more comfortable to talk openly about their mental health.”
But she added: “I still think there’s a lot of work to do.”
Where to seek help
- The Samaritans can be contacted on day or night, 365 days a year on 116 123
- Breathing Space: 0800 83 85 87
- The Prevent Suicide app is available for download at the App Store and Google Play. In the north-east it is also available on Amazon for Kindles.
