When it comes to discussing mental illness and suicide in the media, it can be a difficult subject - and the policy has often been not to report on it. at all.
But, ignoring it doesn't make a pressing social problem go away.
And this is why the Ministry Of Health And Wellness has arranged a mental health training session with the media to educate journalists on how they can responsibly report on mental illness and suicide, without sending the wrong message across.
The training began today and will cover a web of issues tied to mental health. The technical advisor for the Mental Health Unit in the Ministry Of Health And Wellness told us more.
Iveth Quintanilla, TA Mental Health, MOHW
"When we're trying to educate the journalists when it comes to responsible and ethical reporting on mental health and suicide, because the five-year trend has been reflecting that there has been an increase in suicide and beliefs, except for preliminary data which is showing 2024 with a slight decrease."
"But each life matters and we are trying to ensure that we educate journalists as well as the public in terms of being able to identify the signs and the symptoms when it comes to suicide and the support services that are available in order for us to work more and try to prevent suicide."
"So with us today, we have two consultants from India, from the Indian Law Society, and they're experts in the field who will be sharing their knowledge in educating the journalists on this topic. And as well, myself, I will be doing part of that training as well when it comes to speaking on stress, on burnout, trauma, and self-care of the journalists themselves."
"There's a lot of myths surrounding speaking about mental health and suicide, and that is something that we wish to correct because many people believe that when we speak about suicide, we're putting the idea in people's minds, and that is definitely not right."
"So we are actually encouraging people to speak about suicide, about mental health, in order for them to receive the support that they need. There's still a lot of stigma surrounding the whole mental health topic, and that is what we are trying to decrease."
The training continues tomorrow.
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