Around a hundred residents of Tenerife take their own lives each year on average, and the trend is increasing, according to experts. This data gives meaning to the 1st Suicide Prevention Conference organised by the Island Council on the 13th of June at the Aula Magna of the University of La Laguna (ULL). It will bring together around 600 experts in the field of suicide in healthcare, clinical settings, education, media, and related areas. Prevention and raising awareness are the tools that professionals have to combat this issue, which has an “enormous complexity” in its origins. A statement by mental health psychologist José Pereira perfectly encapsulates the situation faced by individuals who make the tragic decision: “If someone who jumps into the void could stop halfway, they would, but it is no longer possible for them to turn back.”
Within 24 hours, there have already been a hundred registration requests for the conference – registration can be completed on the website essscan.es/formacion. The event is being held in collaboration with the Canary Islands School of Health and Social Services (Essscan) and the General Directorate of Mental Health and Addictions of the Health Department of the Canary Islands Government. The event was presented by the island’s Education for Prevention councillor, Juan Acosta; the Director of Essscan, José Montelongo; and the aforementioned José Pereira, Head of Service in the regional area.
Statistical Data
Pereira provided comparative statistical data between Gran Canaria and Tenerife, where 90% of the 230 cases in 2021 and 233 cases in 2022 occurred. The trend is rising on this island, with 123 suicides in 2022 compared to 85 in 2021, while the neighbouring island maintained a figure of 100. Juan Acosta explained, “In recent years, mental health has been a major concern for thousands of people due to the increase in cases across different age groups.” He emphasised, “Suicide, considered a mental health issue, has notably increased to become a serious public health problem.” Therefore, he argued that “preventing suicide requires an intersectoral approach that addresses a multifactorial issue as a social priority involving not only health structures but also all institutions and the general population.”
“Significant”
José Montelongo described the conference as “significant” for Essscan because it “fulfils the objective of promoting mental health education and suicide prevention.” José Pereira elaborated, “The aim is to raise awareness and prevent suicidal behaviour, providing training to professionals and the community.” On dealing with a topic that was taboo until recently in the media, he concluded, “In my opinion, information should be provided rigorously without delving into distressing details, yet not hiding this reality.”
Programme
The Aula Magna of the University of La Laguna will host the presentations, which can be followed by interested professionals as they will be live-streamed.
8:30 a.m.: Distribution of documentation
8:45-9:00 a.m.: Inauguration of the Conference
9:00-9:45 a.m.: Suicide Behaviour Prevention Programme in the Canary Islands. Francisco Javier Acosta Artiles, Doctor of Medicine and Specialised Psychiatrist, General Directorate of Mental Health and Addictions;
9:45-10:30 a.m.: Prevention of suicidal behaviour in the child and adolescent population. Manuel Ajoy Chao, Medical Doctor, Specialist in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Coordinator of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Unit – Fuerteventura
10:30-11:15 a.m.: Pain, hopelessness, suicidal behaviour, and education. Keys to their prevention in the educational environment. Suicide behaviour prevention from the Education System. Calixto Herrera Rodríguez. Coordinator of Colourful Caterpillars and Butterflies in the School Desks programme. Educational Inclusion Service.
12:00-12:45 p.m.: Suicide behaviour prevention in the elderly. Jorge Lázaro Archilla, Specialised Psychiatrist at the Gran Canaria Doctor Negrín University Hospital.
12:45-1:30 p.m.: Suicide in the media: to speak or to remain silent. María Rosario Cejas Méndez, Doctor of Medicine and Specialised Psychiatrist, Head of the Psychiatry Department at the University Hospital of the Canary Islands, as well as an associate professor of Psychiatry at the University of La Laguna (ULL).
1:30-2:15 p.m.: The day after a suicidal behaviour. Eduardo Vera Barrios, Psychiatrist and President of the Canarian Association of Neuropsychiatry and Mental Health.
2:15-2:30 p.m.: Conclusion of the Conference
