A joint virtual event between Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) and Glasgow Council for Voluntary Sector (GCVS) took place on 28 April 2021 to highlight the risks of suicide contagion.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, mental health has been a key area of focus for our HSCP and partners. Suicide prevention efforts and training have been crucial to raising awareness and prevent suicides in the city. In 2019 alone, 833 suicides were registered in Scotland (620 males and 213 females) compared to 784 (581 males and 203 females) in 2018.

Partners have now come together to bring issues to light about suicide contagion, and how to safely communicate on the sensitive topic of suicide. 

Suicide contagion is the phenomena whereby exposure to one suicide, or to suicide behaviours, can cause the rate of suicidal thoughts and behaviours to escalate. For example, the death of a relative or friend or even reports on an unconnected person in the media, could directly or indirectly lead to a person’s suicide. Even fictional portrayals of suicide – such as in a TV drama or film – can lead to contagion effects.

Sheena Arthur, Partnership Manager at GCVS said: “This event is the start of a conversation to support our Third Sector partners in their work to support communities in dealing with a range of issues including suicide. The HSCP team has been a great support to us and we will continue to develop our relationship with staff to ensure the community has skilled and confident workers and volunteers.” 

The event, attended by over 60 individuals, was kicked off by Dr. Trevor Lakey, Health Improvement and Inequalities Manager, Mental Health, Alcohol and Drugs, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and Glasgow City HSCP. Trevor gave a suicide contagion overview and talked about current research, which shows that when suicide methods were reported in the media, the number of deaths in the population using the same method increased by 30%. 

Trevor said: “Taking steps to reduce the risk of suicide contagion is an important part of our HSCP’s overall suicide prevention effort. This training has been crucial to ensure that more people in Glasgow are aware of the risks of misreporting suicide and to get the message out there on how to best approach and report the subject of suicide.”

Find out more about suicide contagion by reading the Samaritan’s 10 Top Tips for Reporting Suicides.

If you're experiencing distressing or suicidal thoughts, or if people around you have expressed concern about your wellbeing, talk to your GP or NHS 24 on 111. If you need to talk, phone Samaritans on 116 123 or Breathing Space on 0800 83 85 87.