P.E.I. releases suicide prevention strategy

The P.E.I. government has released a new suicide prevention strategy, which calls for actions including building suicide barriers on the Hillsboroughbridge, increasing promotion of the Island Helpline, and establishing mobile crisis response units.

The strategy, released Friday afternoon, was created by the Department of Health and Wellness, in partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association.

The province said the release of the strategy, called The Building Blocks of Hope, follows a year of research, analysis, and consultations with Islanders, community groups and service providers.

"Suicide is a very complex issue and often there are many factors that are combined to create the hopelessness that leads to this tragic outcome," said Health and Wellness Minister Robert Mitchell in a written release. "Our approach to prevention must address these complexities."

65 action items

The strategy focuses on three overarching topics: hearing, helping, and healing. Those are further divided into six key areas of focus, and 65 "action items."

Some of those actions include:

• Modernizing policies related to harassment and bullying in schools and post-secondary institutions.
• Building barriers on the Hillsboroughbridge.
• Improving tracking of suicides, attempts, and ideations.
• Supporting suicide education in schools.

The strategy recommends that a task force be created to work on implementing the recommendations. Amanda Brazil,director of programs and policy with the Canadian Mental Health Association, said she hopes to see many Islanders get involved with making the recommendations a reality.

"We need to work together, we all need to start being able to ask those questions, to recognize the signs," Brazil said.

"What I would encourage people to do is read the strategy and try and find yourself, where's your role in this because we all have a role in building hope."

'Progress being made'

Friday's announcement was especially meaningful for Joe Driscoll. His son, Jason, died by suicide in 2017. Driscolland his family participated in the consultations, and said he was pleased to see that most of the ideas they discussed were addressed in the strategy.

"Most of our idea ... was centred around reaching people in the early stages. Getting into the schools and stuff, which was already in progress, but I think it's carried forward with this strategy," Driscoll said.

He said he is alsoglad to see a focus in the strategy on reducing stigma around mental illness and suicide.

"I really do think there's progress being made and I think it's going to save lives."

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