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Sirens to ring on 9 September to remember emergency workers who have died by suicide

Charity wants nurses to use event to promote suicide prevention 

Charity wants nurses to use event to promote suicide prevention among paramedic colleagues

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Nurses and other front-line staff are being urged to take part in an event to raise awareness about suicide among emergency service workers and how to prevent it.

Mental health charity the Laura Hyde Foundation (LHF) wants 999 staff who are not on emergency calls to sound their sirens for one minute at 9am on 9 September to remember colleagues who have died by suicide.

The charity – which was set up in memory of Royal Navy nurse Laura Hyde who took her own life in 2016 – said that in 2020 it had supported more than 300 emergency services staff who had tried to take their lives, including nurses.

Nurses urged to promote suicide prevention

LHF chair Liam Barnes, Laura’s cousin, said that if nurses do not have access to a siren, they can find their own way of joining in with the event.

‘Nurses can work with their paramedic colleagues and use the day to promote suicide prevention, but if they are not able to, they can use it as a time to consider colleagues,’ he told Nursing Standard.

‘Suicide in the health professions is not a recent phenomenon, and suffering from mental health issues has been shrouded in secrecy and shame. We’re saying you are no different from anyone else, there is specialist support available.’

Stark statistic on nurse suicides

According to NHS Employers, nurses are four times as likely to die by suicide than people working in other professions in the UK.

In June, the LHF released a free suicide prevention resource that has been distributed to thousands of front-line staff in hospitals, police stations, and fire and rescue stations.


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