National Suicide Prevention Advisory Group Annual Report 2023/2024

2. NSPAG Role in Raising Awareness and Making Connections

“The NSPAG’s strength for me has been the open and multidisciplinary nature of the Group bringing academic rigour, lived and living experience, frontline health staff and colleagues from the third sector together as well as the justice system. It has been a privilege to be part of the Group.” Dr Douglas Hutchison, NSPAG member

During the first year as Scotland’s NSPAG our members have also been laying the groundwork for our individual commitments to raising awareness, sharing insights, promoting effective practice and encouraging leadership action on suicide prevention across our own professional areas of influence and our networks. This has included making connections between those working specifically to deliver the suicide prevention strategy and others who also have important roles to play.

Examples of individual NSPAG member contributions in 2023/24 have included:

• Cath Denholm (Interim Chair, Equalities and Human Rights Commission) advising on and providing information on equalities research and data, and on understanding the distinction between tackling inequalities in suicide itself and tackling the underlying inequalities across society as a whole.
• Dr Linda Findlay (Psychiatrist and former National Clinical Lead for Distress Brief Interventions) advising on extending engagement across specific networks of health professionals and in relation to specific health policy initiatives, providing a foundational perspective on the Distress Brief Intervention model and its opportunities/learning for suicide prevention, and raising awareness of the suicide prevention strategy and plans with the Royal College of Psychiatrists Scotland.
• Louise Hunter (Chief Executive, Who Cares? Scotland) facilitating work with Suicide Prevention Scotland to improve data on suicide and suicide risk among care experienced people and encouraging care experienced people to participate in research into engagement with health services.
• Dr Douglas Hutchison (President, Association of Directors of Education Scotland) advising on the role played by education, and local government more widely, in prevention and in supporting children and families touched by suicide. In addition, raising the issues of suicide prevention with ADES groups and networks.
• Peter Kelly (Chief Executive, The Poverty Alliance) meeting directly with local suicide prevention leads, organising a seminar for members of the Poverty Alliance to identify practical actions to support suicide prevention including improved signposting and training for staff and volunteers, and raising awareness of suicide and the suicide prevention strategy with the national Child Poverty Programme Board.
• Sheriff David Mackie (Chair, Hearings for Children Working Group) raising awareness of suicide risk and the suicide prevention strategy across criminal justice and child protection networks, and advising on common social determinants of suicide and entry into the criminal justice system, such as poverty and access to timely, effective mental health support.
• Catherine McWilliam (Scotland Director, Institute of Directors) highlighting opportunities to embed suicide prevention in the New Deal for Business initiative and engaging with Suicide Prevention Scotland to co-design resources for business leaders to create supportive and inclusive working environments that reduce suicide risk.
• Brendan Rooney (Chief Executive, Healthy n Happy Community Development Trust) advising on working with communities on tests of change and engaging across the community development, communities and third sector networks and agencies to raise awareness of the suicide prevention strategy and action plans through articles, workshops, presentations and direct contact.
• Prof Andrea Williamson (GP and Professor of General Practice and Inclusion Health) providing advice on integrating the Time Space Compassion approach into primary care, advice on suicide prevention training and support for GPs and primary care practitioners, highlighting specific challenges such as primary care capacity and rurality in mitigating suicide risk, and advising on tackling inequalities in health provision and on the social determinants of health in community settings.