Engaging More Stakeholders in Suicide Prevention at Earliest Possible Stages

Mr Keith Chua asked the Minister for Health what are the immediate ongoing actions to engage more stakeholders in suicide prevention at the earliest possible stages.

Suicide prevention requires coordinated whole-of-Government and whole-of-society efforts targeted at multiple sectors and involves a full spectrum of measures from upstream prevention, such as building mental resilience, early risk detection and addressing suicide triggers to downstream interventions, such as crisis support and treatment of associated mental health conditions.

Current preventive efforts include the Health Promotion Board’s public education and campaigns to raise mental health awareness, build mental resilience and reduce stigma. These aim to normalise help-seeking by mentally distressed individuals and equip the community with effective skills to support one another. These efforts are sustained through on-ground programmes, social media outreach and the online portal MindSG, which offers mental health resources curated by professionals.

In addition, the SG Mental Well-Being Network was launched in 2022 to bring together partners and citizens to strengthen mental health and well-being outcomes for our society. Well-Being Circles have been set up under this initiative in different neighbourhoods to strengthen community and peer support by equipping citizens with the skills to care for their own mental well-being and that of others around them. Today, there are six Well-Being Circles in different neighbourhoods and over 500 citizens have been trained as peer supporters. We will continue to support community stakeholders to initiate more of such Well-Being Circles.

To support at-risk individuals in the community, the Agency for Integrated Care has collaborated with social service agencies to set up and expand the network of community mental health teams that offer mental health assessments and psychosocial interventions, with linkages to other ancillary support services.

The Interagency Taskforce on Mental Health and Well-being, comprising representatives from over 30 Government agencies, public and private sectors, has put together a comprehensive strategy to strengthen the mental resilience and well-being of the population, including suicide prevention. The strategy is targeted to be released by the end of this year.