TRAININGIN SUICIDEPREVENTIONSKILLS

SUICIDE PREVENTION

ISSUE 35

EMERGENCY SERVICES IRELAND

The recent rise in Ireland’ssuicide rate is havinga direct impact uponemergency servicespersonnel who arecalled out to assist inan increasing numbero difcult cases. OneDublin-based Coast Guardunit has responded witha specialised traininginitiative to help itsmembers provide theappropriate level o careand assistance. Report byElaine Healy.

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EMERGENCY SERVICES IRELAND

SUICIDE PREVENTION

unique Applied SuicideIntervention Skills Training(ASIST) workshop, hostedby Aware, is teachingthe skills necessary to intervene insituations where suicide is a possibility.Aware trainers deliver these two-dayinteractive workshops to groups of upto 30 participants, including voluntary,community and youth workers, Gardai,teachers and members of the clergy.A group of 20 members of HowthCoast Guard Cliff Rescue Teamparticipated in the Aware workshop inSeptember, 2009. For Howth Coast Guardmember Colin Murray, participating in theASIST course provided invaluable helpin understanding the psychology behindsuicide.“The course helped us to understandthe mindset of people who contemplatesuicide and what they are going through,”

said Murray. “It is difcult to deal with. All

emergency services personnel deal withsuicide at one time or another, and oftenall you have to fall back on is the trainingyou receive and how to work with it.“Attempted suicide is a problem wehave always had in Howth. Some yearsyou would have a noticeable number and,other years, there are hardly any. Weunfortunately had a few in 2009 and wewere aware that, with the present climate,we may be coming across more.”According to Aware’s spokespersonSandra Hogan, there is often a lackof understanding of the warning signsindicating depression or suicidaltendencies. She said ASIST is aimed atpeople, including emergency servicespersonnel, who are likely to come intocontact with individuals in this situation.“Many people who consider suicidewill give some indication to someonearound them, although it may not alwaysbe obvious,” said Hogan. “ASIST trainspeople to understand these signals orindications and to then increase themeans of support available to that personto keep them safe.”INTERVENTION SKILLSHogan believes that suicide interventionskills are particularly important foremergency services personnel. “Wheresomeone is suicidal, they may engage insuicidal action or self-harm, and in somecases, emergency service personnel may

be among the rst people on the scene,”

she said. “Being able to deal with thesituation in a sensitive and appropriateway is important, as is understanding whya person may end up in such a situation.It is also very important to work to makethat person safe and then, if possible,to identify other supports that may beavailable for them.”ASIST trains participants tounderstand what a person, at risk ofsuicide, may need from others to helpthem to see beyond their situation. Itencourages honest, open and directtalk about suicide. Participants are alsoasked to consider how their personalattitudes and experiences might affecttheir approach. Active participation isencouraged, using audio-visual aids andsmall work groups.“It is quite an intensive course,” saidColin Murray. “It teaches you what to dowhen you come across potential suicides – it's about connecting with people whomay be considering suicide and gettingto know them. It is about

nding out why they

are there and what their intentionsare. Approaching them the right way,and asking the right questions, can be

difcult.”

Direct, straightforward communicationis the often the best way to forge aconnection, Murray said. “Being upfrontin asking people about their intentions isimportant. We sometimes tend to skirtaround the issue, but often, if you ask theperson straight up what their intentionsare, they will let you know. You must tryto understand and engage with them,” hesaid. Helping people to envisage a wayout of their situation, and to seek furtherhelp, is another core element of the ASISTprogramme.“There are three stages: connecting,understanding and assisting. Once you

nd out what the situation is, you then

try to protect the person fromit happening again,” saidMurray. “You learn toassist them

Howth Coast Guard Cliff Rescue Team pictured during a recenttraining exercise on the cliffs in Howth

ISSUE 35

EMERGENCY SERVICES IRELAND

SUICIDE PREVENTION

in planning a way out of the situation and

nd a way that it will not arise again in the

immediate future. Over 20 members ofHowth Coast Guard took part in the ASISTcourse, along with representatives fromDrogheda Coast Guard, the local life-saving club, the scouts and the Gardaí.Murray recommends the course,

SEARCH AND RESCUE SERVICES

Established in 1999, Howth Coast Guard (HCG) is a 26-member Cli RescueTeam that provides search and rescue services in various locations spanningthe north coast o Dublin – rom Clontar to Malahide.HCG is one o 50 voluntary coastal rescue units o the Irish Coast Guardunded by the Department o Transport. It works directly with the GardaiSíochána and the local fre services. It is also called to incidents by the IrishCoast Guard Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre (MRCC), a 24-hour co-ordinating service or all o the country’s coastal rescue units. HCG operatescli and water rescue teams; it uses a pager system to contact members andhas a 10-minute response time.HCG also works with individuals and groups that use coastal amenities.“We are working with anglers ollowing a recent accident and on DollymountBeach, which is popular with kite surers. We are working with the Irish KiteSurer’s Association to, or example, put identity tags on their gear,” saidFergus Cooney.“Every now and again, one o them will lose a kite or a board and, isomebody sees it on the side o a cli, they might assume that there hasbeen an accident and call us out.The Irish Coast Guard asks that i members o the public see anyonewho they think may be in trouble on the clis, beaches, at sea or on inlandwaterways, then please dial 112/999 and ask or the Coast Guard. Do notassume someone else has made the call.

which is available free of charge, toother emergency services personnel.“For anybody who may come across thissituation, I would recommend taking partin the ASIST course. It gives you moretools to talk to the person and deal withthe situation,” he said. “Early interventionis always good. Everybody is at risk atany age, and it is important that there arepeople out there whose eyes are open tothe early warning signs.”LINKED TO DEPRESSIONFigures released by the Central Statistics

Ofce (CSO) in October 2009, showed a

worrying 40 per cent increase in incidents

of suicide in the rst three months of the

year, compared to the same period in2008. According to the CSO, more than100 people took their own lives in thethree-month period from January to Marchin 2009, including 85 men and 21 women.“Over the last few years, there hasactually been a marginal decrease in the

suicide rates, but it seems that guresfor the rst few months of 2009 show an

increase on the same period in 2008,which is, of course, very regrettable,” saidSandra Hogan. According to Hogan, morethan 80 per cent of suicides can be tracedback to depression.“We know that many people strugglewith depression alone and never get helpwith it. Even where people come forwardfor help, the mental health servicescan fall far short of what they should bedelivering,” she said. “The impact of therecession is probably having an impact as

well. Financial difculties and concerns

for the future can lead to increased stressand anxiety levels.”