Blog post: Suicide Prevention Training Module for undergraduate students

Our research team, with funding support from the HSE National Office for Suicide Prevention, has designed a comprehensive suicide prevention training module for  undergraduate health and social care students.

The aim of the training is to give students the knowledge, skills and empathy essential for managing and supporting individuals at risk of suicide. Importantly, there is an emphasis on self-care and wellbeing for the students themselves.  

Watch our new video, which explains why the training is needed and what is involved.  

The module has now been piloted to 200 health and social care students across University College Cork and University College Dublin. The insights gained from this pilot will inform future iterations of the content and contribute to the development of a train-the-trainer programme. 

By implementing a structured training module, we hope to bridge the gap in current educational offerings and ensure that future health and social care professionals are prepared to support individuals at risk of suicide. 

Take a look at our information page to read more and, as always, you can contact us for further information.  

The research team would like to extend their deepest gratitude to all our collaborators. Your dedication, expertise, and support have been invaluable throughout this work.  

A very special thanks also to our research participants, for their time, engagement and commitment to attending each session! 

Our annual World Mental Health Day Seminar

Our 5th annual World Mental Health Day Seminar took place on Thursday last week. Insightful conversations and innovative discussions abounded in the Dr Dora Allman Room in UCC as we heard from hugely informative national and international speakers.

We came together to share our experiences and our research related to mental health, self-harm and suicide in celebration of World Mental Health Day 2024.

Dr Shane Mc Inerney delivers his Keynote Presentation

Prof Alexandra Pitman from the University College of London Division of Psychiatry and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist, Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, delivered the Dr Michael J Kelleher Memorial Lecture on ‘Temporal risk factors for suicide: anticipating & mitigating risk’.

Our Keynote Speaker, Dr Shane Mc Inerney, from the University of Galway and National Clinical Lead for Self-Harm and Suicide Related Ideation, presented ‘Findings from a Safety Planning Group Interventions and Updates on the National Clinical Programme for Self-Harm and Suicide related ideation.

Left to right: Dr Eric Kelleher, Prof Alexandra Pitman, Dr Eve Griffin, Dr Shane Mc Inerney, Dr Margaret Kelleher, Prof Ella Arensman

In addition, we held three Masterclasses on:

  • Engaging contributors in Lived Experience Research, facilitated by Dr Aileen Callanan and the NSRF Lived Experience Panel
  • Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention in the Workplace, facilitated by Prof Ella Arensman and Dr Mallorie Leduc
  • Interventions for specific subgroups who engage in self-harm, facilitated by Dr Mary Kells and Dr Eric Kelleher
Masterclass

This Seminar was organised by the NSRF, in particular members of the C-SSHRI team. C-SSHRI is a research community specific to suicide and self-harm, which aims to facilitate collaboration between researchers, help with disemmination of research findings and raise awareness of our research.

The C-SSHRI Network is always open to new members – you can learn more here.

With thanks to the Higher Education Authority of Ireland and the HSE National Office for Suicide Prevention for their support of our event and of C-SSHRI.

Celebrating World Mental Health Day 2024

Our team are busy organising a special event to celebrate World Mental Health Day 2024.

This year’s official theme is:

“It is time to prioritize Mental Health in the Workplace”

This theme was chosen through a global vote involving World Federation for Mental Health members, stakeholders and supporters.

With a few of our current projects exploring this exact topic, mental health in the workplace is a very timely theme for the NSRF. For example, PROSPERH; a Horizon Europe-funded research project which began in January of this year.

To increase awareness of mental health in the workplace, and to showcase the research progressing in this area, we are planning a one-day Seminar in collaboration with the Higher Education Authority and the HSE National Office for Suicide Prevention.

In keeping with our previous annual World Mental Health Day events, this Seminar will include the Dr Michael Kelleher Memorial Lecture, as well as a Keynote Lecture and Research Masterclasses.

The list of speakers will be announced soon, so keep an eye here and on X for updates.

Update: We have now reached capacity for registration. If you would like any further information, please email infonsrf@ucc.ie

20th European Symposium on Suicide and Suicidal Behaviour (ESSSB20)


The European Symposium on Suicide and Suicidal Behaviour (ESSSB) takes place every two years and is considered one of the most important international meetings exploring suicidal behaviours and suicide prevention.

This year, beautiful, historic Rome and it’s glorious sunshine provided the perfect setting for a very engaging meeting.

Several members of the NSRF team attended the conference, which took place 28th – 31st August.

The NSRF team exchanged knowledge and experiences with others in attendance, and heard about the latest challenges and innovation surrounding global mental health and suicide prevention.

Dr Eibhlín Walsh presenting at ESSSB20

Below is a list of our team members who attended the conference and the titles of their presentations.

For more information on any of the presentation or projects, please email infonsrf@ucc.ie

Dr Eve Griffin

  • Social Determinants of Suicide: An Umbrella Review

Professor Ella Arensman

  • Bridging the Treatment Gap for Depression and Suicidal Behaviour: EAAD’ s 4-Level Approach for Stigma Reduction and Help-Seeking Facilitation

  • Mental Health Promotion and Intervention in Occupational Settings: MENTUPP

  • Implementation and Evaluation of National Suicide Prevention Programmes – A Global Perspective

Dr Paul Corcoran

  • Surveillance of Self-Harm and Suicide in Ireland and the Impact on Public Health Policy – Progress and Challenges

Dr Isabela Troya

  • Healthcare Practitioners’ Views on Management Practices of Self-Harm in Older Adults: A Qualitative Study Conducted in Ireland

Dr Eibhlin Walsh

  • A meta-ethnography of adolescents’ perspectives on and experiences with post-primary school-based suicide prevention (Poster Presentation)

Dr Selena O’Connell

  • Understanding Variation in Clinical Management of Hospital-Presenting Self-Harm: A Qualitative Study of the Implementation of a National Clinical Programme
Dr Selena O’Connell presenting at ESSSB20


Dr Grace Cully


Dr Mallorie Leduc

Mallorie joined the National Suicide Research Foundation as a Senior Researcher on the Horizon 2020 EU-funded, Mental Health Promotion and Intervention in Occupational Settings, MENTUPP, project.

Within the team based in Ireland, Mallorie is involved in the coordination of the cluster randomised controlled trial involving organisations from the construction, healthcare and ICT sectors across 8 European countries and Australia.

Mallorie completed an Interdisciplinary PhD in Rural and Northern Health focused on occupational health and safety education intervention programs that have been conducted within rural and northern industries and communities.

Dr Madhav Bhargav

Dr Madhav Bhargav is a postdoctoral researcher at National Suicide Research Foundation and School of Public Health at University College Cork.

He completed his master’s and PhD from the School of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin. His PhD focuses on childhood trauma and psychopathology in college students.

His research within NSRF focuses broadly on public health and policy related to suicide and self-harm across Europe.

Madhav has presented at various international conferences on youth mental health, with particular focus on childhood trauma and emotional dynamics in youth. He has also published peer reviewed papers, several articles, and presented on topics relating to mental health of youths in Universities.

Úna O’Callaghan

Úna joined the NSRF in September 2023 as Financial Controller.  Úna has worked in finance for 18 years and has held senior positions within the Healthcare Sector.

Úna qualified as an accountant with CPA Ireland in 2009 and continues to undertake continuous professional training and development each year.

Together with Eileen Hegarty, Úna overseas the finance function of the NSRF and is responsible for all financial reporting activities and ensuring financial compliance as well as budgeting, forecasting and long-term financial planning.

Dr Michelle O’Driscoll

Michelle is a post-doctoral researcher working on the Health Service Executive National Office for Suicide Prevention (HSE-NOSP) funded projects, having joined the NSRF in 2023. In addition, Michelle is also a Clinical Pharmacy Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy, UCC.

Michelle’s PhD examined the effects of a mindfulness-based intervention on pharmacy student stress and distress, a national mixed-methods controlled trial. Her current research interests lie in the areas of suicide prevention and wellbeing education, postvention interventions, and reducing access to means.

Michelle qualified as a pharmacist after completing her BPharm at UCC in 2011, and MPharm in RCSI in 2012. Michelle also holds a Certificate in Teaching and Learning from UCC, and a Professional Diploma in the Teaching of Mindfulness-Based Interventions.

What we learned about HUGG peer-support groups for people bereaved by suicide

HUGG, led by Fiona Tuomey (CEO), is an organisation supporting adults bereaved by suicide across Ireland through peer support groups. These are groups of up to 12 people bereaved by suicide who meet every fortnight to discuss their bereavement experiences and support each other.

Our research team received funding through the Irish Research Council to examine the impact of participating in these groups and the experiences of group members, using a combination of follow-up surveys (for up to 6 months) and interviews. We learned that those attending peer support groups experienced improved wellbeing and reduced symptoms of traumatic grief. We also measured depression symptoms, physical grief reactions, and stigma experienced. These measures did not change during participation in the groups.

When we interviewed people attending the HUGG groups, they told us about why the groups helped them. The groups provided the opportunity to share their experiences with other people bereaved by suicide; to feel less alone in their experiences; to glean hope from seeing people at different stages in their bereavement journey; and to think about things differently through hearing other peoples’ perspectives.

In this project, we heard from a small sample of people, and did not capture views of people who may have had negative experiences of peer support. However, our research highlights the benefits of peer support groups for those who seek them out. The study also tells us about the experiences that might be more difficult to change for people bereaved by suicide. We saw little change in peoples’ experiences of stigma. Improving this likely requires activities that encourage all of us, in the wider public, to continue to challenge stigma towards suicide and suicide bereavement.

“Ni neart go cur le chéile” or in other words, there is no strength without unity.

Project lead: Dr Eve Griffin

Research team: Dr Selena O’Connell, Dr Eimear Ruane-McAteer, Dr Isabela Troya, Niall Seymour, Dr Paul Corcoran, Prof Ella Arensman

Funding: Irish Research Council’s New Foundations 2020 scheme.

To find out more about the study and findings visit our project webpage.  Find out more about HUGG here

 

Grace Phillips

Research Officer

Grace is a research officer at the National Suicide Research Foundation. Grace is involved in the organisation of C-SSHRI Network research events such as Webinars, Workshops and Virtual Seminars. Grace is also responsible for research funded by the Higher Education Authority’s. Her work will contribute to the overall outcomes of ‘Connecting for Life’ to reduce suicide and self-harm rates in the whole population and amongst specified priority groups.

Before joining the NSRF, Grace worked in the School of Public Health, and temporally in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, UCC. Grace has completed an honours undergraduate degree in Public Health (UCC) and a Master of Public Health, Epidemiology pathway, at the School of Public Health in UCC.

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