Dutch gov't to invest more in suicide prevention
Those in the Netherlands in life threatening danger should immediately dial 112 for emergency services. Anyone suffering from depression or contemplating suicide may call 113 Zelfmoordpreventie at any time by dialing either 113 or 0800-0113. Counselors at De Luisterlijn may also be reached at 088-0767000, or volunteers may be reached at one of their local numbers. A list of suicide crisis hotlines outside the Netherlands is available on Wikipedia.
State Secretary Paul Blokhuis of Public Health will critically look into the cause of the increased number of suicides in the Netherlands, he said on Tuesday. He wants to know what caused the increase, and whether it is a one-time peak or if something else is going on, NU.nl reports.
On Tuesday Statistics Netherlands revealed that 1,917 people committed suicide in the Netherlands last year. The number of teenagers who died by suicide nearly doubled, from 48 in 2016 to 81 last year.
According to Blokhuis, the increase "underlines the necessity of the government's policy to put extra emphasis on suicide prevention". One of the government's measures is to push more money into suicide prevention foundation 113 Zelfmoordpreventie.
Blokhuis will discuss the increase in suicides and measures to improve suicide prevention with 113 Zelfmoordpreventie and the association of Dutch municipalities VNG, among others, this week, according to the newspaper.