This article is from page 22 of the 2012-02-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 22 JPG
AN ENNIS Town Councillor has appealed to her colleagues to undertake training to assist them in dealing with one of the last taboos in society.
Cllr Mary Howard (FG) asked members of the council to undertake a half-day training programme to help them identify persons with thoughts of suicide and connect them to suicide first aid resources.
“Suicide is hard to talk about and we can use the wrong words at times,” she said.
She believes that the “Safe Talk” course, hosted by the HSE and the National Office for Suicide Prevention (NOSP), would help councillors deal with an issue they are facing more regularly.
Cllr Mary Coote Ryan (FG) said the town was torn apart by suicide.
“I spoke to a man who was out of work who said there was no hope for him, and why wouldn’t he go and do something? It is very frightening. I did not know what to say except never give up hope,” she said.
Mayor of Clare, Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind) said that more people come to talk to the councillors because they are their elected representatives, and many of these people feel they cannot talk to their loved ones.
Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) told his fellow councillors that in 1996, a fellow councillor told him that he should not talk about suicide in the council chamber.
“All this is swept under the carpet. We don’t talk about things like that, he said to me. Well, it is time peo – ple should be talking about suicide. I would like to see Cllr Howard bring this to the Ard Fheis of Fine Gael,” he said.
Cllr Howard said that suicide was the fastest growing cause of death in Ireland and was affecting people of every gender, age and social outlook. “We are so afraid of words,” she said.
“By asking someone if they are suicidal is not putting the ideas in their head. I think we could do with some guidance on how to talk to someone and direct them to help,” she said.
“It is frightening the number of people I know that died from suicide, many of them girls I went to school with that had their whole lives in front of them.”
Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind) raised concerns about undertaking such a course. “After a half-day course. I don’t think I would be capable of talking to someone,” he said.
Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) welcomed the course, however.
“I think we should all embrace the training. I think it is a starting point. I don’t think we will all be experts.”