Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 8 Oct 1997

Vol. 481 No. 2

Adjournment Debate. - National Task Force Report on Suicide.

Mr. Neville

Thank you, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, for allowing me to raise this matter and I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moffatt, for coming into the House to reply. I know he has an interest in this area because we discussed this issue previously.

I call on the Minister for Health and Children to immediately publish the report of the National Task Force on Suicide. The work of the task force was completed before Easter, but the publication of its report was delayed. There is an urgent need to introduce suicide prevention programmes. The Minister has a responsibility to tackle this problem. The publication of the report of the task force, which will herald a public debate on approaches to the problem, is an important first step in dealing with the issue. The Minister should not delay any longer in dealing with it.

The former Minister, Deputy Noonan, set up the task force in November 1995. It produced its interim report in July 1996. It contained a detailed analysis of existing data relating to suicide, attempted suicide and associated factors. The former Minister had envisaged that by the end of 1996 the task force would have published its completed work, but this has not happened to date.

I note from a Minister's reply to a written question I tabled yesterday that there were 378 recorded suicides in 1996, l4 fewer than in l994. However, there is an upward trend in the suicide rate. There were 327 recorded suicides in l993, 357 in 1994 and 378 last year compared to approximately 60 in the 1960s and 1970s.

This distressing trend has been evident for more than 20 years and there has been very little serious discussion about it. Suicide is still part of the hidden Ireland. Society is not equipped to deal with the issue and cannot shake off the stigma or remove the taboo surrounding it. That must change. Irish society must wake up and deal with this serious public health issue. It must be discussed in a compassionate and informed way. We have a responsibility as a society and a State to respond to those who feel suicidal. They must know that services are available and where to seek help. There must be an immediately widely known understanding and compassionate approach to the problem.

I pay special tribute to the excellent work of the Samaritans and the Friends of the Suicide Bereaved. However, the State also has a duty. It has been almost totally lacking in providing services in this area for the community. It has a duty to be responsive to those who have suicide ideation or those who attempt it.

There are two approaches to the problem. The first is to do nothing based on the idea that suicides are rare unpredictable events and that the rate fluctuates independent of service development or human intervention. That approach is neither human nor scientific. It is out of step with what has been done in other advanced societies. The alternative is to establish a national policy as has been done in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany and Britain. There has been a downturn in the number of suicides in those countries, particularly among the young and this has been attributed to the effectiveness of national programmes.

The prerequisite to our doing something is the publication of the report of the national task force and it is now almost 12 months since its expected publication. I ask the Minister to publish the report and allow a public debate on its findings.

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Dr. Moffatt)

I thank Deputy Neville for raising this issue on the Adjournment. I am fully committed to publishing the final report of the National Task Force on Suicide at the earliest possible date. The report is at an advanced stage of preparation. My Department is consulting other relevant Departments on the costs of implementing the recommendations of the report.

In Ireland we have seen an increase in the numbers of reported suicides and attempted suicides over the past 20 years. Between l945 and l995 the number of deaths attributed to suicide in Ireland rose from 71 to 383. The figure in l995 represented an increase of 8.5 per cent on that of l994. As the Deputy is aware the issue of suicide is complex and constitutes a serious social and health problem.

The rise in the suicide rate is not confined to Ireland, it is a global problem on which the World Health Organisation in its Health for All document has recommended action to reverse this rising trend by the year 2000. It highlights the importance of early detection and treatment for certain groups of people. The National Health Strategy, Shaping a Healthier Future, expressed concern about the increase in the rate of suicide, especially among our young people.

In order that help and support might be given to those at risk from suicide it is essential that all factors associated with suicide and suicidal behaviour are clearly identified and understood. With this in mind a National Task Force on Suicide was established in November l995 with the following terms of reference. They include: to define numerically and qualitatively the nature of the suicide problem in Ireland; to define and to quantify the problems of attempted suicide and parasuicide in Ireland, including the associated costs involved; to make recommendations on how service providers can most cost effectively address the problems of attempted suicide and parasuicide; to identify the various authorities with jurisdiction in suicide prevention strategies and their respective responsibilities; and to formulate, following consultation with all interested parties, a national suicide prevention strategy.

The task force comprises individuals from a range of backgrounds, including coroners, the Garda Síochána, nursing, psychiatry, psychology, public health and voluntary organisations, to which should be added GPs. In its interim report published in l996, the task force addressed its first two terms of reference. It contained a detailed analysis of statistics relating to suicide and attempted suicide in Ireland and included a preliminary analysis of the factors which might possibly contribute to changes in the incidence of suicide.

The task force then addressed its other terms of reference and considered, in detail, the numerous submissions received, written and oral, from interested individuals and organisations. The task force conducted a major consultative process in the formulations of the national prevention strategy. Careful consideration has been given to the views expressed by all interested parties and this material has been of enormous benefit in the preparation of the national strategy.

There are several questions and theories surrounding the issues of why people are driven to taking or attempting to take their own lives. The task force in its brief has attempted to unravel from an Irish perspective some of the many factors influencing suicide in Ireland.

The findings and recommendations of the task force point to a multi-sectoral approach to tackling this complex issue. It is clear that the implementation of a national prevention strategy is not only confined to the health services. If we are to be successful in reducing the numbers who commit suicide and the numbers of attempted suicide, we must ensure that there is partnership and a collective approach to tackling the problem. I am confident that the consultative approach can only heighten the Government's determination to tackle this serious problem. The final report of the National Task Force on Suicide and, in particular, the national strategy will be a benchmark in responding to this complex and tragic issue. I assure the Deputy it is the intention to have the report published as soon as possible.