Northern MP calls for more suicide prevention services
To raise awareness and remember those lost to suicide, leaders and communities across northern Saskatchewan are recognizing World Suicide Prevention Day.
Georgina Jolibois, MP for Desnethe–Missinippi–Churchill River, said it’s pivotal to acknowledge the reality of suicides.
“The annual suicide rate in Saskatchewan’s Keewatin Yatthé Regional Health Authority…is the highest of any health authority in the province,” Jolibois said in a news release. “At 43.3 suicide deaths per 100,000 people between 2008 and 2012, the northern health region has a suicide rate more than triple the provincial rate of 12.7.”
She said all levels of government must go after the “root cause of suicide and instill hope, particularly among our youth.”