Advocates and officials mark World Suicide Prevention Day

Over the last ten years, Scott Chisholm has been striving to prevent suicide through his organization, Collateral Damage Project, by stomping stigma, and creating proactive dialogue.

Chisholm said it's important for conversations surrounding suicide prevention to happen often, and not just on days like World Suicide Prevention Day. He said through the years he has also learned of the importance of proactive dialogue, as many conversations surrounding suicide often happen once someone is already in crisis, or once someone has died.

"I think what we need to do as communities is really bring this conversation back as far as we can and understand that the issues that lead up to suicide happen often over many, many years," said Chisholm in an interview on CBC's Superior Morning.

"When I talk about talking about suicide every day, it's like cancer. We don't wait for a cancer prevention day or month to talk about cancer. There's events going on all the time, grassroots people who are affected by it and want to prevent it, get involved," said Chisholm.

Chisholm said there's work to be done when it comes to addressing social determinants that could lead to someone having suicidal thoughts such as health, relationships, financial issues, and addiction issues.

To address these issues, and other challenges entrenched in suicide prevention, Chisholm said he would like to see the creation of a suicide prevention council at a local level in Thunder Bay.

Chisholm added that conversations surrounding suicide prevention should also include the idea of life promotion. He said through the years, he has participated in a project funded by the National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Strategy, that focused on assisting youth in finding "purpose, hope and belonging."

"When it comes to Indigenous people in Canada, because of residential schools and and broken treaties and the system that they've been forced into over hundreds of years, it really makes life promotion important and fundamental part of suicide prevention for indigenous people in Canada," he said.

The Chiefs of Ontario and Ontario Regional Chief RoseAnne Archibald, are also marking World Suicide Prevention Day by calling for "accessible, timely, and compassionate support" that focuses on the needs of First Nations families in the province.

"Suicide prevention and life promotion are interconnected. We need to work together to find effective, sustainable and culturally appropriate services and programs that address complex and deep-rooted issues such as healthcare inequities, inadequate delivery methods and other very real challenges being confronted by First Nations families and communities," said Archibald.

Archibald said moving forward, genuine partnership between young leaders, and the federal and provincial ministries, must take place, where families, communities and shared-cultures are a part of the discussion and solution.