Experts advocate coordinated and cross-disciplinary work by all the agents involved to prevent suicide

The UVic-UCC hosted the first international Mental Health and Social Innovation seminar last Wednesday, which brought together nearly 200 professionals from the health and social sectors to address the problem of suicide and the keys to its prevention. The initiative, which was established with a commitment to continuity, was organised jointly by the University, the Althaia Foundation, the Hospital Consortium of Vic and Osonament - the four member institutions of the SaMIS research group (Mental Health and Social Innovation).

The various speakers at the seminar provided figures for suicide rates in Catalonia, in Spain and in other countries, as well as figures at the international level. 507 cases were recorded in Catalonia in 2016  - a figure that makes suicide the primary cause of external mortality - ahead of traffic accidents. According to Cristina Molina, the director of the Master Plan for mental health and addictions of the Government of Catalonia's Directorate General for Health Planning, these cases "are just the tip of the iceberg, because there are twenty attempts for each death." Molina outlined the projects that are under way to prevent suicide, including the Suicide Risk Code, which defines the procedure to be followed after an attempt, and which identified 6,388 cases in its first year of operation.

A holistic and broad-based perspective

Cases of good practices in prevention were shared at the seminar, and some of the most viable lines of work were defined to address and minimise cases that occur. "We are facing a paradigm shift towards a preventative, recuperative and participatory model that is irreversible," said Molina, who argued that "collaborative work by health, education, social services, justice and work" is essential.

Most of the professionals and researchers who spoke at the seminar agreed on this need to address suicide as "a public health problem that requires a holistic and broad-based perspective," as well as "a comprehensive response," in the words of Jordi Villà, Vice President for Research and Knowledge Transfer of the UVic-UCC. According to Villà, who chaired the opening ceremony, this is precisely the objective of the SaMIS research group, which brings together the health, social and academic fields, and which organised the seminar.

45 researchers and 6 research lines

Its coordinator, Salvador Simó, reviewed the process involved in establishing the group, which he described as "a dream that has taken shape as 45 researchers, 6 research lines," 4 member institutions and many others involved. Simó also mentioned the group's determination to "create knowledge that has an impact on people's inclusion and social development" and to "combine academia with inclusion and participation in health and social welfare."

The first vice-president of the Osona Regional Council, Joan Carles Rodríguez, concluded that one of the objectives of the SaMIS is to carry out research in the social sphere, and called on researchers to "conduct rigorous and honest research based on methodology, prioritising quality over quantity."

The afternoon session was devoted to outlining six research lines of the SaMIS group: recovery and social innovation, social health and community health, the prevention of suicide, severe mental disorders, neuroscience and neurodevelopment, and psychological assessments and interventions in mental health.

Renowned speakers

Among the speakers who attended the conference was Dr Wolfgang Rutz, professor of Social Psychiatry at Coburg University (Germany), who defined suicide as "the most significant indicator of a society's mental health" and highlighted the need for a more effective establishment of mental and public health institutes. According to Rutz, "suicide must be addressed jointly from the human and scientific point of view" and "society must be tolerant enough to allow each person to find the meaning of their existence."

Dr Ellenor Mittendorfer, Professor of Neuroscience at the Karolinska Institutet (Sweden), presented two studies carried out in her home country on suicide and immigrants and exiles from outside Europe. The results show that "suicide rates are even lower in this group than among the native population," except among unaccompanied minors, a high risk group in which the rate of attempts is 10 times higher than among Swedish minors - a figure that Mittendorfer links to "traumatic experiences that they may have experienced." Accordingly, she is calling for more preventive measures and for similar studies to be carried out in other European countries.

Mercedes Navío, coordinator of the Mental Health Office of the Ministry of Health of the Community of Madrid, explained the strategies to reduce suicide rates they have applied in the region. Among other factors, these involve "ensuring continuity of care, the correct diagnosis of the risk and providing good care for the people affected."

The seminar also covered other issues, such as innovation in mental health through community interventions, and included the presentation of the Catalan Mental Health Cluster, which has been incorporated into the UVic-UCC in 2018.