A Community-Based Response to a Suicide Cluster

Abstract

Abstract. Background: A 45-month community-based suicide prevention program was launched in response to the emergence of a suicide cluster in 2010 in Hong Kong. Aims: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the program, document the implementation and outcomes of the project, and identify factors that contribute to the outcomes. Method: The program was delivered following the five key components of the public health approach: (a) community consensus building; (b) surveillance and monitoring; (c) development of coordinated action strategies; (d) interventions development and implementation at the universal, selective, and indicated levels; and (d) program evaluation. Results: A significant decreasing trend of suicide was found in the study site during the intervention period, whereas no changes were found in the three control sites. Spatial analysis also showed that the suicide cluster subsided after the intervention. Three impacts and one challenge of the program were identified from the qualitative feedback of the program stakeholders. Limitations: More investigations should be made to assess the sustainability of this community-based suicide prevention effort in the long run. Conclusion: A community-based suicide prevention program was successfully implemented to address the suicide cluster. A reduction in the suicide rate was observed after the intervention.

Change in suicidal ideation and associated factors among young adults in Hong Kong from 2018 to 2019: a latent transition analysis

“…The present findings contribute to empirical knowledge toward formulating effective interventions for youth suicide prevention. Apart from standard means, such as restriction of access to means of suicide and responsible media reporting of suicide cases, other potential strategies include improved access to mental health care via a 24-h online emotional support system and promotion of suicide prevention programs that are community based [ 64 ] or distance based [ 65 ]. Siu [ 66 ] has advocated earlier prevention strategies, such as online monitoring programs and life skills training programs, for the adolescents to help with their transition into young adulthood.…”

Healthcare staff's views on responding to suicide and self‐harm: Part II

“…In the United States, 51 college employees who engaged in ASIST demonstrated significant improvements in responding to people in distress when compared to a control group 39 . Both Asarnow and Wang 40 and Lai et al 41 found that community engagement in suicide prevention programs resulted in significant decreases in suicides in the United States and Hong Kong, respectively. Considering the positive effects of such programs, it is recommended that communities promote some form of suicide and self‐harm education or training.…”

Changes in the epidemiological profile of suicide in Hong Kong: a 40-year retrospective decomposition analysis

“…The prevalence of jumping might be explained by its accessibility and lethality given that HK is the world’s densest city, where most people live in multistory buildings. Installing barriers such as platform screen doors have been found to be effective suicide prevention strategies in HK railway stations, thus adopting similar community-based suicide prevention approaches for high-rise buildings may be similarly effective (Lai et al, 2020 ; Law et al, 2009 ). Experiences of restricting access of a suicidal person to charcoal or displaying warning labels on charcoal packs appear to have been another effective suicide prevention model in the community (Wu et al, 2012 ; Yip et al, 2010 ).…”