Eastern District has adopted a multi-agency approach towards preventing suicides by forming a working group comprising the police and community stakeholders.

The EDIST Suicide Prevention Working Group is the brainchild of Eastern District Commander Peter Morgan, who is a long-standing member of the Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC). He joined the PNC as a member in 1986 and has been its Commanding Officer since 1998. He is also an Honorary Associate Fellow of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention of the University of Hong Kong, after joining the Centre in 2004.

Mr Morgan's secondary duty in the PNC and his association with the Centre convinces him that making a dent in the suicide problem requires a co-ordinated response by all stakeholders, as well as a more comprehensive prevention programme. Thus last year he sought to tap the expertise of various stakeholders by inviting them to sit on his Working Group.

Response was encouraging and the Working Group officially came into being last September, chaired by Mr Morgan and comprising representatives from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital, Social Welfare Department, Caritas Integrated Family Service Centre and Housing Department. Also sitting on the Working Group are a total of six officers from EDIST and Chai Wan Division, as well as Psychological Services Group's Senior Clinical Psychologist Li Kam-wah.

The Working Group has thrashed out its terms of reference as follows:

* To identify factors contributing to "Deliberate Self Harm" (DSH) in Eastern District;

* DSH is defined, for the purpose of this Working Group, as the total number of reported suicide and attempted suicide cases in EDIST;

* To identify and develop DSH prevention initiatives at a practical level within the community;

* To enhance public awareness and community support on how to prevent DSH in Eastern District, and

* To explore means to provide a joint support service to vulnerable persons as well as their relatives and friends.

In a letter-to-the-editor column in a local English newspaper on February 14, the Director of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, Dr Paul Yip, described the Working Group as a "community-based programme to raise awareness of suicide prevention, increase opportunities for mental-health consultation, target hot spots, train stakeholders and so on".

The Secretary of the EDIST Suicide Prevention Working Group, Senior Inspector Dilys Lo Shui-lin, pointed out that establishment of the Working Group is in line with two of the work objectives outlined by the new CP recently: to provide more training for Force members and enhance communication and liaison with various sectors of the community.

"The Working Group provides a very good platform for the police to work closely with the parties sharing our concerns and commitment. The Working Group has provided training to frontline officers on how to handle suicide cases and how to take follow-up actions. More training will be provided in due course," she said.

Working Group projects

The Working Group has had a lot on its plate in a matter of a few months after its inception. It is working on several projects, including a training video and a "First Responder Kit" for frontline officers, an Information Card containing useful information such as addresses and telephone numbers for persons at risk to seek help, a publicity poster to be put up on public housing estates, and a Police-Social Welfare Referral Mechanism for persons who have attempted or survived suicides.

At the same time, two members of the Eastern Hospital, Dr T W Wong, Consultant at the Accident and Emergency Department, and Dr Sunny Liu, Senior Medical Officer at the Department of Psychiatry, will conduct seminars for general practitioners on their roles in preventing suicide.

And the Project Director of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, Ms Law Yik-wa, will liaise with the Education and Manpower Bureau for providing training for parents and schoolteachers. For the Working Group's way forward, Ms Law will also carry out research, based on the information and data to be provided by EDIST.

As a member of the Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, Mr Morgan is pleased to see that efforts are being made to engage the news media in a positive collaboration for reducing a public health problem - suicide. He said that the Centre, with the support and blessings by the Hong Kong News Executives' Association, had published recommendations on suicide reporting for the mass media.

"The mass media also have a useful role to play in reducing suicide; they are capable of making a contribution to the community's collective efforts. The recommendations provide useful references to journalists. By following the recommendations, they would be seen covering suicide cases in a responsible manner. Therefore, I strongly recommend the publication to our media friends," he noted.

DC EDIST Peter Morgan with members of the EDIST Suicide Prevention Working Group at an EDIST JPC function