Abstract
Suicide is a major public health issue. In Japan, local governments are responsible for suicide prevention, and local government officers are therefore expected to act as gatekeepers for suicide prevention. In this study, through a questionnaire survey, the authors examined the current knowledge and attitudes concerning suicide prevention among local government officers and healthcare and welfare professionals, and the effects of providing suicide prevention education on their knowledge of and attitudes toward suicide and its prevention. One hundred eighty-three local government officers and 432 healthcare/welfare professionals completed the survey before and after a single education session. Before the session, the local government officers and healthcare/welfare professionals showed mainly positive attitudes toward suicide prevention efforts, with little difference between the two groups. After the training, knowledge and attitudes were further improved for most questionnaire items. Respondents with one or more experiences of suicide prevention training showed significantly more knowledge and positive attitudes before the training than those with no such experience. Moreover, knowledge of depression and having a sympathetic attitude were found to be especially associated with the overall attitude that “suicide can be prevented”. Training in suicide prevention was shown to be effective in promoting appropriate knowledge and attitudes among local government officers and healthcare/welfare professionals who are gatekeepers for preventing suicide. Our findings confirm the importance of suicide prevention education, and will contribute to creating a standard educational program on suicide prevention in Japan.
Highlights
Suicide is a complicated phenomenon and a major public health issue
Individuals who work in the areas of social welfare and healthcare are well placed to act as gatekeepers for suicide prevention, and need appropriate knowledge of suicidal behavior and skills in order to work with suicidal individuals
This study revealed the basic knowledge and attitudes of both local government officers and healthcare/welfare professionals acting as gatekeepers in Japan, showed a positive educational effect of specific training on suicide prevention, and revealed the factors that need to be covered by educational programs
Summary
While mental disorders clearly contribute to some suicides, other risk factors for suicide include physical health, family history, social isolation, economic circumstances, employment issues, support systems for primary healthcare and welfare, and cultural background [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]. Against this background, individuals who work in the areas of social welfare and healthcare are well placed to act as gatekeepers for suicide prevention, and need appropriate knowledge of suicidal behavior and skills in order to work with suicidal individuals. In Japanese local governments, officers are placed in charge of counseling for life problems, irrespective of whether they are professionals
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