Op-ed by Dr. Yasin Duman, Research Specialist, MHPSS Hub
This is the third and final year of the World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) triennial theme, Changing the Narrative on Suicide, with its call to action, Start the Conversation. It is a relevant theme, and it has generated change. However, as the triennium closes, I want to explore whether it might have been interpretated too narrowly. The understanding of “narrative” has perhaps been limited in scope. Indeed, it plays out in multiple arenas – anything from public discourse and social media debates to family conversations and school programmes. However, it has not in my opinion involved a systematic analysis of what the global evidence base tells us about where suicide happens, why, and what to do about it. Accordingly, we have not collectively acknowledged the asymmetry of the narrative we have tried to change – it is defined in the areas of the world that are least exposed to suicides.
