Empowering Teachers, Guardians and Mentors: A Strategy for Preventing Suicide Among Students

Death due to suicide has been identified as an issue of concern globally, with one person dying every 40 seconds (WHO, 2021). This year to 2026, emphasis has been given to encouraging openness and conversations in order to prevent suicide. Additionally, the need to change the narrative by building the right attitudes is imperative in order to be able to help those going through suicide ideation and suicide attempts. 

In my years of interacting with students from primary, secondary, and college as a trainer, I witnessed very diverse mental health issues among these groups. During this time, suicide ideation was frequent. Regrettably, there was one case of a student dying of suicide some minutes after leaving the school compound.

Death by suicide has been identified as among the leading causes of death among young people. If you are reading this article, probably you have a student within your reach. It could be a sibling, a relative, or your sons or daughters. As mentors, teachers, or guardians, we can do something to save a life.

First, raising our own mental health awareness is key. Suicide among students arises from several factors that could be social, academic, environmental, or family-related challenges, among others. We can invest in acquiring mental health knowledge that will go along way in making us effective to handle challenges that would result in suicide ideation or attempts among students.

Secondly, cooperation with other stakeholders in seeking to have mental health awareness education included in school curriculum. As a teacher in secondary school, I noted that life skills education was taught with laxity or completely ignored. In some cases, it would be replaced by another lesson. A deliberate decision that mental health awareness is crucial can help in fostering protective skills that discourage suicide.

Further, our responsibility in ensuring that suicide cases are reported with caution would aid in preventing contagious suicide. Lack of careful reporting of suicide cases among students could lead to suicide being transferred to others, making it contagious. Most students under 18 years of age are susceptible to making impulsive decisions and may decide to end their lives if information on suicide is communicated glamorously.

Encourage the conversation; prevent suicide!

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