Conference Agenda

Background: To inform Ireland’s next suicide reduction strategy, a national public consultation invited input from individuals, communities, and organisations.

Methods: Information was gathered via an online survey (March 5 - April 18, 2025) including both closed and open-ended questions relating to progress made so far in suicide prevention and their priorities for the upcoming strategy. The survey was open to all members of the public and organisations, with special emphasis placed on hearing from those with lived experience of suicide. Additional standalone submissions (n=25) to complement the public consultation survey were received from individuals and organisations who wished to provide further information.

Findings: A total of 1,895 individuals responded to the survey. Most (82%) reported lived experience of suicide, primarily through bereavement or being impacted by suicide (68%). Responses to the online survey were predominantly from females (70%), White Irish (90%), and those aged from 40 - 59 years (55%). Responses from organisations accounted for 17%, mainly representing community, voluntary, and advocacy sectors. Support for national policy was strong: 85% of respondents believed suicide reduction should be prioritised “to a great extent.” Five main themes were identified from qualitative responses, reflecting individuals’ experience of suicide-related support and opportunities for improvement: ensuring accessible and high quality services, enhancing care systems, targeted interventions and support, education and stigma reduction and the role of social determinants in suicide prevention. Standalone submissions highlighted additional priorities, including monitoring and research, and learning from Connecting for Life, Ireland’s previous strategy.

Conclusion: Insights from this consultation, combined with an evidence review of suicide prevention interventions and risk and protective factors for self-harm, informed the actions and recommendations developed by an Advisory Group and Lived Experience Reference Panel for Ireland’s third suicide reduction strategy.

Introduction Estonia has historically recorded one of the highest suicide rates in Europe, reaching around 30 suicides per 100,000 people in the early 2000s and consistently ranking among the top six countries. Although rates have steadily declined over the past two decades to approximately 14–15 per 100,000, it remains above the European average of 10.2 per 100,000. In 2024, Estonia reported an age-standardized suicide rate of 12.6 per 100,000. Middle-aged adults (40–59 years) accounted for the highest number of suicides and 1,776 potential life-years-lost. Among young people aged 10–19, 10 suicides were recorded, representing 23.8% of all deaths in this cohort. These indicators highlight suicide as a persistent public health concern requiring structured national responses.

Methods To address these challenges, Estonia developed the Estonian Suicide Prevention Action Plan (SETK) through participation in the European Commission’s JA-ImpleMENTAL initiative. SETK (2025–2028) adopts a unified, whole-of-society approach built around eight strategic goals, with dedicated emphasis on early intervention and postvention—identified as the weakest components of existing prevention efforts. The plan outlines 31 operational objectives and 60 targeted activities designed to strengthen capacity, coordination, and community involvement. Implementation is coordinated by the Ministry of Social Affairs, which sets priorities based on available resources and secured funding.

Results Current strategic partnerships with NGOs have enabled initiatives focused on raising public awareness, increasing knowledge of suicide prevention, strengthening early intervention and postvention, and ensuring reliable national suicide statistics. Key planned activities for 2025–2026 include gatekeeper-training, recognizing journalists for responsible suicide reporting, supporting bereaved individuals, encouraging research and statistical analysis, and mapping active follow-up options for suicide attempters.

Conclusion The SETK framework provides the foundation for sustainable, community-based suicide prevention efforts. By strengthening partnerships, expanding preventive activities, and improving support for at-risk individuals,Estonia aims to further reduce suicide rates, enhance community resilience,and ensure timely access to care.

Introduction:Set in the context of unique legislation-the Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act–‘Understanding’, a new Suicide Prevention and Self-Harm Strategy was published in Wales in April 2025.

Methods: The Strategy was developed through rigorous engagement including a review of the successor Strategy, formation of an expert drafting group and a16-week public consultation with complementary specialised engagement including children and young and those with lived experience.

Results: This extensive engagement led to the transformation of the draft, including the amendment of the title itself speaking to the shift in narrative from encouraging people to speak up to listening when people share without fear of judgement or discrimination, through a more compassionate understanding of suicide and self-harm. The Strategy was drafted in a manner which seeks to show that we, as a Government had listened and ourselves understand what our stakeholders want and need.

The Strategy is focussed around six objectives based on continued listening and learning, prevention, empowering everyone to listen and support one another, holistic service support and effective responses following the embedded principles of being trauma-informed, person-centred and evidence based, including drawing on the knowledge and experience of those who have been affected.

Whilst the Strategy recognises the distinction between mental health and suicide it also recognises that mental health services are often those services which people will rely on for support when it is needed most urgently. Therefore, it was developed alongside the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy for Wales which seeks to transform mental health services in Wales, introducing a stepped care model and allowing same to access to support, including for people with suicidal ideation.

Conclusions: Together these Strategies aim to deliver on our ambition to achieve an annual reduction in suicide rates in Wales and provide compassionate, person-centred support for everyone, whenever they need it.

In the last three decades Slovenia has wittnesed a nearly 40% decline in suicide mortality. Yet the suicide rate remains one of the highest in Europe, namely 18/100 000. Slovenia does not have a standalone national suicide prevention strategy. However, suicide prevention is one of six priority areas within the National Program for Mental Health (MIRA, 2018–2028), coordinated by the National Institute of Public Health. Each priority area, including suicide prevention, has strategic goals defined for the current Action Plan (AP). Action Plans typically cover two years; exception is the current AP which was approved by the Slovenian government in July 2025 and covers the period 2025–2028.

The strategic goals for suicide prevention in this AP were set by the multidisciplinary Program Committee for Suicide Prevention, a panel of experts from various fields.

The goals include: (i) raising awareness among the general public; (ii) continuing collaboration with the media on responsible suicide reporting; (iii) establishing a national postvention network; (iv) restricting access to means; (v) reviving and further developing a registry of suicides and suicide attempts.

Goal (i) focuses on delivering the Mental Health First Aid program to the general public; a pilot involving 500 participants is currently underway. Goal (ii) targets media professionals and includes establishing the Papageno Award to promote responsible reporting. Goal (iii) aims to develop a nationwide postvention network in schools and workplace settings. Goal (iv) involves identifying potential high risk locations through analysis of police reports; to date, over 800 reports have been reviewed, providing insights into suicide-related communication, circumstances, and high-risk locations. Goal (v) seeks to revive the national suicide registry, originally established in the 1970s, and create a real-time rapid surveillance system.

Progress on AP tasks is regularly monitored and evaluated to ensure continued implementation and improvement.