Media practitioners are not prevented from reporting about suicidal behaviour but it needs to be prudent and sensitive, said Deputy Health Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni.

He said the Ministry of Health (MOH) has prepared prudent reporting guidelines regarding suicidal behaviour, including the avoidance of displaying the name and picture of the victim and not detailing the manner of suicide.

“Unsafe suicide reporting can also cause trauma to readers, especially those who know the deceased and individuals who are at risk of suicide,” he said when officiating at the Malaysia Suicide Awareness Voice of Hope (MySAVE) programme here today.

The MySAVE programme is an initiative in the form of affirmative action to strengthen the implementation of prevention activities against suicidal behaviour at the national level.

Among the MySAVE programmes include monitoring of media reporting on suicides, the promotion of the HEAL Line 15555, and suicide prevention training for police officers, firefighters and the Social Welfare Department.

At the programme’s question-and-answer session, Lukanisman said news reporting that details too much into suicidal methods had the potential of giving ideas to mentally unstable individuals to imitate suicidal ways.

Lukanisman said there was also a ‘positive angle’ to news reporting on suicidal behaviour such as commenting on mental health symptoms and providing information on intervention or platforms for seeking proper help.

Regarding the National Centre of Excellence for Mental Health (NCEMH), which has been operating since October 2022, he said the centre had received 22,074 calls through the HEAL Line 15555 as of July 22.

Of the total, 66 per cent or 14,537 individuals received support and emotional assistance while 7,537 individuals had been given specific interventions by counselling psychology officers.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency