West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership has published a Suicide Prevention Strategy and Action Plan for 2022-2027.
The strategy aims to make suicide prevention everyone's business and is based on a long-term vision for zero suicides in West Yorkshire.
Key takeaways from the strategy:
- Every death is one death too many. A 'zero suicide' philosophy underpins the strategy.
- West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership aims to achieve a minimum 10% reduction in the suicide rate across West Yorkshire over the next five years.
- Grief and loss, money worries, alcohol, relationship breakdown and mental health problems are significant factors that may cause someone to take their own life.
- More men than women die by suicide.
Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows that suicide is more common in West Yorkshire than in England as a whole.
In order to bring suicide rates down and reduce preventable death, the strategy aims to make sure everyone plays a part. This includes citizens, voluntary and community sector organisations, the NHS, local authorities, employers, emergency services, and others.
Nichola Sanderson, one of three Senior Responsible Officers for suicide prevention in West Yorkshire, and the Deputy Director of Nursing at Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust said:
"My experience as a mental health nurse has given me the privilege of working with people and their families at the most distressing and vulnerable times. I believe that with the right help and support, all death by suicide can become a thing of the past."
Kim Shutler, SRO and the Chief Executive Officer at The Cellar Trust in Shipley said:
"Suicide prevention in a post-pandemic climate will require us all to dig deep and pull together to do everything we can. We also need to work hard to raise the profile of this work. Suicide prevention is everyone's business. It isn't just in the domain of mental health services. I encourage everyone reading this to take a pause to think what their role could or should be."
You can follow the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership on Twitter www.twitter.com/WYpartnership and join the conversation around the strategy using #WYSuicidePrevention.