In Scotland alone an average of two people die every day from suicide. The Mental Health Division of the Scottish Government Health Directorates and Choose Life NHS Health Scotland are working to change this statistic by dispelling the myth that talking about suicide promotes suicidal behaviour.
The national suicide prevention campaign - ‘Don’t hide it. Talk about it’ - will be launched during Suicide Prevention Week (SPW) (8 –14 September 2008). The campaign is a key element of implementing Choose Life, Scotland’s 10 year strategy and action plan for preventing suicide. Choose Life was launched in December 2002 and sets out a plan for national and local action to prevent suicide and help those affected by or bereaved by suicide. Specifically, this means raising awareness of suicide and its prevention and encouraging a better understanding of its risk factors among the general public. The aim is to encourage people to seek help early and to empower others to help those at risk.
The Key campaign messages are:
If you are feeling suicidal, don’t hide it – talk about it
It’s OK to talk about feeling suicidal
Talk to someone you trust, or phone a helpline (Breathing Space 0800 83 85 87 or Samaritans 08457 90 90 90).
There will be a host of local and national activity during SPW. Each local authority in Scotland has a dedicated Choose Life Co-ordinator who will engage with their local communities in order to raise awareness of local suicide prevention events and activities. The national campaign will consist of a week long programme of radio advertising, online advertising - via websites and MSN Messenger and Hotmail - and a week long programme of coverage in the Sun newspaper.
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