Coordinated approach to tackling suicide launched

Coordinated approach to tackling suicide launched


Taoiseach says this is ‘vital project at vital time’

Kevin Moran

AN TAOISEACH Enda Kenny officially launched a new protocol to tackle suicide in Mayo last week in Ballyheane.
‘Responding to a Suicide, A Protocol for Mayo Agencies’ was set up to establish a coordinated, integrated response for a family following a suicide in the county.
The project is run by MΡire Ní Dhomhnaill, an accredited counsellor based in the Family Centre, Chapel Street, Castlebar.
The protocol aims to support families by having a dedicated liaison person who would arrange to meet the bereaved and offer them a range of support services within and outside the county.
From now on first responders such as An Garda SíochΡna, GPs, funeral directors and priests will be working together to ensure each family receives the necessary support after their loss.
An information pack for families affected by suicide has been put together. The pack will include a booklet developed by the Family Advisory Group  called ‘When someone you love died by suicide: This is what bereaved Mayo families have to say.’ This information pack will be given to families by the first responder.
If the bereaved do not wish to meet with MΡire straight away; the first responder will leave this information pack with the family.
Over the years the county has lacked a person specifically trained to meet families bereaved by a suicide and offer them the necessary support and guidance.
The launch was attended by a large gathering which filled Ballyheane Community Centre. Awaiting the Taoiseach’s arrival were a number of pro-life campaigners – who were protesting against the proposed abortion legislation.

Vital project
“This is a vital project at a vital time and I commend everyone for their commitment, their dedication and their vision,” said Mr Kenny
“This county is not alone in knowing the sorrow of so many people who seem to want nothing more out of their lives than to leave them, their tragic and senseless deaths destroy the future of their families, their friends and all of those who love them,” he added
The Taoiseach stated that €13 million was designated to suicide prevention in Ireland and that the government will continue to support the cause by recruiting personnel to be employed in the area. Mr Kenny also hopes the success of this liaison project will formulate a national model in the near future.
Also present was Archbishop of Tuam, Michael Neary who said: “Suicide is one of the most challenging contemporary problems in Ireland. It is a major concern for families and communities throughout the country. It is claiming an average of 500 lives per year in the Republic and 300 in Northern Ireland.”
Archbishop Michael Neary spoke of his experiences of suicide within his own diocese: “The experience of priests and others working in the community suggests that increasing numbers of older people are seeing suicide as an escape from the isolation or loss of independence that comes from old age.”
The Archbishop, who was speaking before the arrival of the Taoiseach, indicated his views on the new abortion legislation: “In potentially normalising suicide in the Bill, the State could be seen as legitimising it and thereby sending mixed signals to young people who are most at risk.”

Coordinator
An emotional Mrs Ní Dhomhnaill was delighted to be asked to co-ordinate the project: “When I was asked to take on the role or coordinator I didn’t think about it for too long, I believed in it as a project. I knew I had very supportive and committed people around me in my own life and in the centre and I believed we had a great and unique resource.”
MΡire concluded her speech by thanking everyone who supported the project despite difficult economic times.
James Ryan, a member of the Family Advisory Group, spoke of the MΡire’s influence on the protocol: “Each of us has benefited hugely from her all-embracing willingness to listen to the most harrowing stories of sudden, shocking loss; she inspires the traumatised bereaved to come slowly back to the world  through meeting and sharing with each other in a secure setting.”
“She is a women of boundless energy and compassion. There are many Mayo people who will be forever grateful to MΡire for her intervention in their lives,” added Mr Ryan.
For further details on the project please contact Maire on 094 9025900 or email mairenidh@thefamilycentre.com