Municipalities start taking suicide prevention measures ahead of new law

More Dutch municipalities are developing and implementing policies to prevent suicide ahead of the new Integrated Suicide Prevention Act, which takes effect on January 1. Currently, only 14 percent of municipalities have a policy to prevent suicide. That must be 100 percent within two years of the law’s implementation, NOS reports.

Last year, 1,849 people took their own lives in the Netherlands, an average of five per day, according to Statistics Netherlands. The 113 Suicide Prevention Foundation is hopeful that the law, which comes with 10 million euros per year to help municipalities implement measures, will help bring that number ot zero.

According to Sanne Leenen of 113 Suicide Prevention, municipalities are increasingly enthusiastic to start taking measures. “In the past, we often had to prove that suicide prevention polices are useful. People were often looking for figures and evidence. Now that we’re receiving government support, it boosts the sense of urgency.”

According to the foundation, suicidal tendencies affect all groups. Last year, most of the people who took their own lives were in their fifties. The suicide rate among people under 30 has also increased over the past 15 years, and it is now the leading cause of death within this age group. LGBTQIA+ people are also a risk group, as are farmers who have experienced many changes in their sector in recent years.

There are many measures municipalities can take to reduce the number of suicides, Renske Gilissen, a professor on suicide prevention at Leiden University, told NOS. Normalizing talking aobut suicidal thoughts in society is the first step, including in schools. “We need to teach children are part of life, but how do you deal with them?”

It is also important that people who tend to come in contact with people experiencing suicidal thoughts know how to broach the topic and talk about it. “We train debt counselors, police officers, and ambulance drivers, for example, to do this,” Gillisen said. This training needs to be increased. “When someone goes to the doctor, it still happens that they say, ‘I’m depressed,’ and the doctor doesn’t ask if they ever think about death.”

A different, but equally effective approach is to simply reduce the possibilities of taking your own life. “Think of fences and anti-walk mats along the railways,” Gilissen told the broadcaster. “And, for example, removing bushes along the railway line so there are no hiding places that you can suddenly emerge from behind.” She also mentioned safety nets and fences around tall buildings. “If you come across a high fence along the railway line, it acts as a barrier, which postpones the attempt. And sometimes, the suicidal urge is already lower afterward.”

To prevent non-public suicides, conversation training for loved ones and the creation of a support network within the municipality are crucial.