During the interactive part of the conference, partners and stakeholders met in groups to exchange input on how the tools elaborated by Euregenas can be further implemented outside and beyond the frame of the project. The conference started with a short plenary, where the moderator Ella Arensman, President of the International Association for Suicide Prevention provided an overview of the context and challenges for suicide prevention in Europe; followed by Monika Ditta Toth, Joint Action on Mental Health and Wellbeing representative from Hungary, who gave a presentation about the Joint Action’s activities and results to date; European Project Manager Sara Carbone from the Veneto Region, provided then a short summary of the Euregenas project results and Marjolijn van den Berg from the Flemish Agency for Care and Health gave a presentation of the Blueprint of an e-conceptual Model for Integrated Technology-Based Suicide Prevention Programmes.

Participants were then invited to take a tour of the “Toolbox Islands” where each project product was briefly presented and discussed in smaller groups, along with examples from each partner providing examples of implementation and dissemination of the tools in their regions.

A report from the conference can be found here.

Please find the presentations below:

Euregenas results, Sara Carbone

Joint Action, Monika Toth

Toolbox Island: Media

Toolbox Island: Toolkit for Survivors' Facilitators

Toolbox Island: Tollkit for Schools and Work Place

Toolbox Island: GP Training

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For many of the partners, Euregenas was the first project of its kind. One of the first lessons was in those cases things like information on how to carry out a long-term project, the importance of good leadership and committed partners’ participation for a successful project. Partners have also learned to deal in a more sensitive way with newspaper articles and media campaigns reporting about suicide (and its prevention).

The partners have very different prerequisites, roles, assignments and mandate to work with suicide prevention. It is interesting and at the same time difficult to find a common baseline but we now know it is both possible and very fruitful. 

I was excited that project also included new areas in the field of suicide prevention

Local networking is a challenging experience.

The Euregenas project has shown the power of working together, in spreading knowledge and thinking of further implementation.

It has made me aware of how vulnerable regions are when trying to weigh on European policy making.

Whilst I absolutely appreciate the importance of evidence-based practice I do also think it important that we don’t lose sight of our ability to provide support and empathy for people bereaved by suicide from our hearts as well as our heads…!

According to another partner: Evidence-based interventions became practice-based as we were sharing them within our group.”

Each project brings its surprises. The clever design of Technology-based Suicide Prevention programmes impressed some partners. Others found it remarkable that all suggestions and observations aired during the project were always taken into account. Another partner was surprised to discover the general awareness of the population on the issue of suicide and its prevention is very low and that projects like Euregenas, which operates in local and regional communities, are thus even more desirable.

I was surprised that practical, hands-on approaches are likely to be applicable in all regions and countries, regardless of the differences in culture and governance systems.

It was really surprising for me how much has already been done in the field of suicide prevention. On the other hand it was even more surprising how little key players in the field collaborate, quite often because they do not know about each other.

It was also surprising that there are serious deficiencies in the care of those that bereaved by suicide.

We were not sure what to expect regarding the outcomes of the project but even if we have had great expectations they would have been exceeded. We will have great use of the EUREGENAS material, especially as our new political assignment is to disseminate and to stimulate implement of the EUREGENAS result with a focus on WP6.

The good relationships and good atmosphere among the partners who, despite coming from very different regions and cultures, have so much in common.

The professional growth and the awareness, that it is possible, even in such a difficult field such as preventing suicide, to work with vigour and enthusiasm.

We have been able, and will be, to take steps forward to support different stakeholders with knowledge and tools that they have expressed need of.

I've received very good examples from other countries about the suicide prevention and I started to apply it in my work. In particular, I'm working on WP8 and the examples from Cumbria are very useful for me. I was surprised to meet really nice people. I have enjoyed spending time with them, even outside the work on the project. The project made me think that suicide prevention is really possible, we should only find the right way.

As any project, we have had our ups and downs and our lessons learned.

For future projects, it should be made clear from the outset that the implementation phase must be performed by each partner. This would buy time to manage funds so that when the project ends, won't be a long lapse on time, and so implementation can be carried out continuously.

The assessed needs of different regions should be evaluated once more after all the tools have been disseminated and successfully implemented.

In our region we have advanced in suicide prevention, due to the participation in Euregenas. Being part of the project has developed our knowledge of what can be done, and how it should be done.

It has been wonderful to work together on such a major health problem as is suicide, with so many people concerned.

I have learned a great deal, both through meeting colleagues from so many other European countries at meetings but also through the virtual facilitators network. I have never been involved in working with several other countries simultaneously using web cam technology and it was a fascinating experience.

I feel privileged to have been asked to facilitate the network. It proved to be a great way of sharing experience and perspectives on facilitating groups for people who are bereaved through suicide and in some countries other sudden traumatic loss. The process was also invaluable for sharing different perspectives on how such groups can be structured and run. There is no one size fits all and we should never assume that the way we do things is necessarily the best or only way to do things.

Thank you all!

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25 November 2014, ARTS56, Avenue des Arts 56, Brussels

Euregenas (European Regions Enforcing Actions Against Suicide) is a three years project, funded from the European Union under the Public Health Programme 2008-2013. The overall objective of the EUREGENAS project is to contribute to the prevention of suicidality (suicidal ideation, suicide attempts and suicide) in Europe through the development of tools for suicide prevention at regional level that can be of use to the European Community as examples of good practice.

The Euregenas consortium has been working to create tailored-made solutions, developed by taking into account different target groups, social trends and the contextual needs reported by the key stakeholders of each participating region.

Different products were developed tailored to specific stakeholders’ categories:

• Training module for General Practitioners
• Suicide prevention toolkit for Media Professionals
• General Guidelines on Suicide Prevention and Ethical Guidelines for Technology-Based Suicide Prevention Programmes
• Suicide Prevention Toolkit for The Work Place and Schools
• Online library
• Toolbox for facilitators of survivor support groups

As the Euregenas project is reaching the end, the conference ”Suicide Prevention: From Regional Needs to European Solutions” aims to ensure that its results will not.

The conference will take the shape of an open space event, where partners and stakeholders will meet and exchange input on how the tools elaborated by Euregenas can be further implemented outside and beyond the frame of the project. After a short plenary, providing an overview of the context and challenges for suicide prevention in Europe, followed by the European Commission’s and the Euregenas project’s responses to these challenges, participants will be invited to take a tour of the “Toolbox Islands” where each project product will be briefly presented for smaller groups, along with examples from each partner on how they got on with implementing and spreading the tools in their regions.

To register for the conference click here. To download the programme click here.

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The forum was attended by 14 speakers, mostly decision and policy makers from local and regional authorities dealing with mental health and public health, family, women, youth, families and nearly 200 participants. The Euregenas project objectives and products were presented by  Daniel Gutiérrez.

The meeting was held in the Hall of the Hospital Virgen de las Nieves, the main Provincial Hospital of Granada City and had a strong impact on local and regional press. Please view the press dossier here, which includes a report from this event.

The post First Local Conference on Prevention and Treatment of Suicide Behaviour in Andalucia a success appeared first on Euregenas.

Three different questionnaires have been developed in accordance to the three categories of stakeholders: Decision and Policy Makers (DPM), Mental Health Professionals (MHP) and persons from Non-governmental Organizations and Social area (NGO). The results carried out in the Needs Assessment Report are a basis for the development of the other project Work Packages of the Euregenas project. The questionnaire focused on the following topics:

• Local Networks
• Guidelines and Toolkits for Prevention
• Technology-based Suicide Prevention
• Training Needs
• Survivor Support Groups

This report comes to the result that there is an extensive need for more information concerning suicide prevention with respect to the development of implementable preventative methods. Especially technology based methods are of minor importance to the participants, which might indicate a need for new approaches that are scientifically based and easy to use. It is notable that none of the three stakeholder categories beholds a sufficient amount of suicide-prevention related guidelines or packages. Most of the recent work on suicide prevention is based on regional level or refers to strategies targeting workplace.
On the whole, the analyses presented in this report point out, that there is a backlog in the area of suicide prevention in the European regions. The main objective of the Euregenas project therefore is to contribute to the development of more adequate, effective and implementable prevention methods to fill these knowledge gaps.

To download the full report, please visit the Euregenas Publications webpage.

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The group was made up of representatives from Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SOB’s), the Samaritans, Carlisle & Eden MIND the local mental health charity that leads on suicide awareness training in Cumbria, also the head of communications the Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. The group quickly realised that it was crucial to invite people who could both represent the media perspective and help others to understand and take account of the issues and challenges faced by journalists.

“We were delighted when the head of media studies at the University of Cumbria and the health reporter from our local paper agreed to join the group. It is important to acknowledge that the local media reporting has been noticeably more sensitive since the process began and that that the local media have been open to discuss the issues in support of the group. “

In practical terms, the group has:

• Agreed to have a ‘conversation’ with the media in Cumbria about the powerful role they can play in encouraging the local community to recognise that mental health and wellbeing are everyone’s concern.
• Held a focus group with people who have been bereaved by suicide to establish the key issues and concerns for them. This will be followed by the conversation with the media to establish and consider their perspective.
• Supported the local media in reporting in a positive and proactive way, encouraging local people to see support for people bereaved by suicide and suicide prevention as a community issue and not simply one for the experts.

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Areas for improvement included young people and their parents finding the system too confusing and waiting times, which were often too long and at the lack of investment on children's mental health services. The innovative work underway in some schools to address emotional resilience, the substantial work already done at a county level on suicide prevention, the good training programmes that exist for professionals, especially around suicide prevention were instead mentioned as achievements.

The review of the mental health support for young people in South Lakeland was chaired by Glenys Marriott, Chairman of Headway South Cumbria and of the Cumbria Neurological Alliance and reviewed by John Asher, Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide, and Zoe Butler, Young Advisor with South Lakeland Inspira who has also been doing.

The media coverage of the launch was very sensitive in addressing both the issue of suicide and stigma. The report and the regional news coverage can be found here. On the same page, Euregenas partner John Brown emphasises the importance of talking about suicide and mental illness in a filmed interview.

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Euregenas was invited to the conference to provide a concrete example of collaboration within the Euregha network. The Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Working Stream was set up in 2009. The WS has organised workshops, issued open statements to the EU institutions and is now focusing its work on the Euregenas Project.

Sol presented the European cooperation in EUREGHA and the EUREGHA Mental health and Suicide Prevention Working Stream, highlighting the implementation of the Euregenas project and more particularly the ethical guidelines and the development of the blueprint for an e-conceptual model. The presentation was well received by the member regions from Euregha as it provided the hosting regional health actors with a concrete example on what can be achieved by working together and sharing experiences. The presentation can be downloaded from here.

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The leaders for Work Package 5 and 6, Flanders Agency for Care and Health and the Unit for Suicide Research, Ghent University, and Work Package 7 and 8, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata di Verona have jointly drafted a report with the purpose to share the findings of the formal consultation on Euregenas deliverables.

In the context of Euregenas, the identification and involvement of key stakeholders has been the basis for the development of all project activities. The involvement of internal and external stakeholders in the Euregenas project is a critical step in the achievement of optimal results. Throughout the duration of the project, different consultation opportunities are sought by the Euregenas partners including Regional Network Meetings (held at local level with key stakeholders in suicide prevention) and the European conference which was organized in Brussels on 21 January 2014.

This short report specifically focuses on the formal consultation launched at the European conference in order to collect feedbacks on the following Euregenas tools:

• Ethical Guidelines for Technology Based Suicide Prevention
• General Guidelines on Suicide Prevention
• Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Media Professionals
• Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Schools
• Suicide Prevention Toolkit for the Workplace
• Training Package for General Practitioners
• Index of the Catalogue of Resources for Survivors

The purpose of the Feedback Report is to summarise the input provided by the stakeholders on these different tools, therefore this report reflects the views of independent experts.

All the input collected have been used both to revise and fine-tune the products of Euregenas almost finalised, and as a starting point to improve tools still at their initial stage of development.

To download the full report, please visit the Euregenas Publications webpage.

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