Hello Friends,

Every day we scan news headlines and social media for items of interest to the field of suicide prevention. Here’s what we found last week:

Waterloo students spur move to add suicide prevention to
the social work curriculum
-Waterloo Record

June 17, 2016
The Canadian Association for Social Work Education has deemed that suicide
prevention training will now be mandatory for all social work students in
Canada. At a recent meeting, a student-led motion for it to be added to all social
work curricula was passed. “We’re thrilled to see the students propose
it,“ said Tana Nash, executive director of the Waterloo Region Suicide
Prevention Council. She hopes other professions who work with vulnerable people
will also consider adding suicide prevention to their studies.
 

Bridge suicide barriers narrow Edmonton’s busiest bike
corridor
-Edmonton Journal

June 17, 2016
The newly-installed suicide barriers on Edmonton’s High Level bridge have
narrowed the pathways significantly, upsetting many cyclists and pedestrians.
Some feel it is dangerously narrow and is a hazard. Some also find the barriers
themselves “traumatizing and aggressive”. Officials realize the path is too
narrow, but it will be at least five years before the city of Edmonton looks at
widening the sidewalks. Mayor Don Iverson says that in 2014 city council felt
there was great urgency to get the barriers erected, after there were 41
suicide attempts in a 2-year period. “It is a trade-off people will have to
live with for now”, he says.

Facebook rolls out suicide prevention to users worldwide-CTV
News

June 16, 2016

Facebook has announced it will offer
its suite of anti-suicide tools worldwide. The tools, developed in association
with Forefront, Lifeline and Save.org, allow users to flag any postings by
others that may indicate suicidal ideation or plans to self-harm. Once flagged,
Facebook has a team which will assess thel risk level and intervene if
necessary.

Inuit leaders applaud funding commitment for Indigenous
mental heal
th-CBC News

June 15, 2016

Karen Kabloona, Nunavut’s associate
deputy minister for quality of life is “encouraged” by the federal
government’s  3-year $70 million pledge to help address health issues and
suicide crises among Indigenous people.

Natan Obed, president of Inuit
Tapiriit Kanatami, also applauds the decision, saying the “federal government’s
level of responsiveness is unprecendented” but he is also hopeful that talks
his organization is currently having with the federal government’s Health
and Indigenous Affairs ministers will result in Inuit-specific mental
wellness and suicide prevention funding.

Uashat band council to coroner: Police need better funding to
fight addiction and suicide
-Montreal Gazette

June 13, 2016
Uashat is an Innu reserve in Northern Quebec. They, along with the neighbouring
Malotenam reserve, have ongoing problems caused by addictions and have
also experienced a rash of suicides in the last year. Their band council is
asking Quebec coroner’s office for better funding for their local police force
to help contain the consequences  brought about by these addictions issues.They
feel their force is severely underfunded, a situation that is thought to
be widespread among Quebec’s Indigenous communities.
 

Queensland budget 2016: Education overhaul, suicide
prevention funding-
 Brisbane Times

June 13, 2016
The Australian state of Queensland’s  health and hospital services will
receive $9.6 million over the next 3 years to help establish The Queensland
Suicide Prevention Health task force . It will investigate suspected suicides
of those who have had recent contact with health services, but later took their
lives. They will aim to improve suicide assessment skills among frontline
staff to better detect at-risk individuals presenting to health services.

Trudeau meeting with Attawapiskat chief to discuss
suicide crisis
-CTV news
June 13, 2016

Bruce Shisheesh, Chief of Attwapiskat First Nation, and Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau will meet to discuss the rash of suicide attempts and
lack of mental health services on the Northern Ontario reserve. Perry
Bellegarde, Chief of the Assembly of First Nations will also be in attendance.
The Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett will meet separately with an
aboriginal youth delegation.

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