Classroom education could help combat rising suicide rates among young Irish people, an expert said yesterday.
Mr Sean McCarthy of the South Eastern Health Board told the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Science that suicide prevention must begin in the classroom with awareness programmes to educate teachers.
Mr McCarthy told the committee, investigating the problem of suicide in schools, that teachers from 33 schools in the south-east regions were trained in 2003 in suicide prevention, intervention and "postvention".
"The training was a framework for dealing with these issues specifically in schools. Schools need to supplement health facility work," Mr McCarthy said. The vast majority of teachers they trained had never received any education on suicide prevention.
The training dealt with prevention and early identification; intervention if a student threatened suicide; "postvention" for dealing with classmates after a suicide, as well as information on health services and support networks.
From 1998 to 2002, 539 people under the age of 24 died from suicide. According to the National Parasuicide Registry annual report for 2001, suicide rates among 15- to 19-year-olds show that males commit suicide four times more than females.
"There is a stereotype about young men in Irish society that they have to be macho, exceptional at hurling or soccer, a big hit with the ladies or a heavy drinker. The classroom could provide the perfect vehicle to bring about a change in attitude and teachers and parents must play their part in doing this," said Mr Barry Andrews TD. School-based interventions involving crisis management, development of self-esteem and coping and decision-making skills, have been shown to reduce the risk of suicide among schoolgoers and third-level students, he said.
More women commit "parasuicide" - taking action that could cause death but does not result in death. Dr Neville de Souza of the health board said this is due to differing psychologies and methods of committing suicide, and that depression is equally common among men and women.