Suicide prevention forum sparks calls for families to be listened to
In the jurisdiction with Australia's highest suicide rate, a mother's desperate search for help before her son's death has sparked calls for change.
Speakers at a recent suicide prevention forum in Darwin have urged healthcare professionals and community members to pay closer attention to individuals at risk of taking their own lives. Among the attendees was a mother from Darwin who lost her 16-year-old son to suicide last year after repeatedly being dismissed by those who could have helped.
Gertrude Jane-Knight recounted her efforts to reach out for assistance for her son Felix, only to be told that he had no issues. Felix took his own life on November 3rd, leaving his birthday to pass unmarked this year. Jane-Knight's story is one of many shared at the forum, which drew around 40 speakers. The Northern Territory has the highest rates of suicide, acute mental illness, and self-harm hospitalizations in the country.
Despite this, the Royal Darwin Hospital's youth mental health facility faced criticism in 2024 for posing risks to staff and patients, and many mental health services are overwhelmed by demand. Jane-Knight now advocates for healthcare practitioners to listen to those seeking help and to be better equipped to refer them to appropriate services.
Karyn Moyle, a co-host of the forum and founder of Waterlily Healing Indigenous Corporation, highlighted the compounding grief faced by Aboriginal people in remote areas due to premature deaths, intergenerational trauma, and poverty. She emphasized the importance of building trust with communities and investing in training and education for mental health workers who will remain in those communities.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
