Teagasc advisors looking out for Mayo farmers with suicide awareness and prevention training

FOR World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10, the HSE has teamed up with Teagasc agricultural advisors across Galway, Mayo and Roscommon to raise awareness and learn new skills around suicide prevention.

The initiative is led by Seán Conneely, senior health promotion officer, HSE West and North West, supported by the HSE National Office of Suicide Prevention (NOSP).

You may well ask why Teagasc agricultural advisors? Research for HSE NOSP entitled ‘Dying to Farm: Developing a Suicide Prevention Intervention for Farmers in Ireland’ (2023) showed that 23% of farmers that participated in the national survey were considered at risk of suicide (i.e. reported having suicidal thoughts and/or urges over the past two weeks).

Teagasc advisors engage with a large number of farmers on a regular basis and build up good working relationships. They are ideally positioned to signpost them to mental health supports available.

Let’s Talk About Suicide is a new, free online suicide prevention training programme from the HSE. It helps people to develop their skills to keep others safe from suicide. It helps identify people who may be at risk, to confidently broach the subject of suicide and connect them with resources that can help them stay safe.

To date, 34 Teagasc agricultural advisors across Galway, Mayo and Roscommon have completed this training and have received a resource pack containing further information to help signpost farmers to additional support services.

Said Seán Conneely: “The response from Teagasc agricultural advisors has been fantastic. All the advisors were very interested in the initiative and when talking to them, I could see that they really cared about their clients and were eager to learn more about suicide prevention and mental health.”

Feedback from participating Teagasc advisors has also been very positive. “This course enhanced my awareness, lessened the stigma associated with mental health, and equipped me as an advisor to act with knowledge and compassion,” said one, whilst another said: “I found the course very informative and has definitely changed the way I would approach a situation where someone was presenting as potentially suicidal. The biggest take away for me was to listen more and validate how they are feeling rather than persuade them that things are not that bad.”

It is hoped that more advisors in the three counties will complete the online programme.

For more information, email sean.conneely2@hse.ie. While this initiative involved Teagasc agricultural advisors, anyone over the age of 18 years can complete this free online course available from traininghub.nosp.ie.

For further information on mental health supports, visit www.westbewell.ie.