Can the web help with suicide prevention?

28-08-2007

by Stephen Errity

The internet can play an important role in the areas of suicide prevention and support, an international seminar in Killarney, Co. Kerry will hear on Tuesday.

Organised by Rehab, the seminar is entitled 'Suicide and the Internet', and proposes to examine the negative role the internet can play in relation to suicide, while also exploring the potential benefits of the web in the promotion of suicide prevention and support services. The seminar forms part of the pre-conference programme for the 14th World Congress of the International Association for Suicide Prevention.

Speaking about the event, Rehab chief executive Angela Kerins said: "There has been much controversy in recent years about the negative and sinister role that the internet plays in the growing rates of suicide in this country, particularly among young people. While it is important that we are aware of the dangers of the internet, when it comes to suicide prevention, the internet has an essential role to play in reaching out to the most vulnerable in our society."

Among the participating national and international speakers is Rachel O'Connell, safety officer for hugely popular social networking site Bebo, who will speak about the positive role of such sites. Also speaking will be Paul Durrant from the Irish Internet Providers Association, who has been involved in finding and closing down a number of websites considered to contain inappropriate content. Anthony Langan, of the UK branch of the Samaritans in the UK, will explain their campaign to promote online options for vulnerable people.

ENN's own Emmet Ryan will be addressing the seminar on the subject of "The not-so-new internet: How young people use websites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and Second Life to interact and communicate."

The seminar will also feature talks by international experts in the field of suicidology and an open panel session chaired by Dr John Connelly, chairman and secretary of the Irish Association of Suicidology.

The seminar has been organised due the high numbers of completed suicides and reported deliberate self-harm among 15-24 year olds, an age group with a high level of internet usage. It follows the launch last week of Rehab's 'Headsup' 24-hour text service that enables young people in difficulty to access a free, confidential helpline and support information simply by texting the word 'Headsup' to 50424. The service received close to 2,000 texts in its first 48 hours of operation.