A suicide symposium aimed at educating a mass of teens on factors leading to suicidal tendencies and suicide prevention was hosted by the Guyana Learning Institute (GLI) on Saturday.
Some of the participants at the symposium hosted by the Guyana Learning Institute
Dozens of youths and young adults turned up at the Guyana Agriculture Workers Union (GAWU) building, Kingston, Georgetown, where the one-day session was hosted. Facilitators of the symposium included former Programme Manager of the National Aids Programme Secretariat (NAPS) Dr Shanti Singh and current students of the tertiary institution.
Speaking more about the symposium, Principal of the GLI Ganga Persaud briefly explained that the programme was planned and executed as part of a footprint project for the 12th batch of students at the institution. On that note, he underscored that the event was aimed at educating and fostering cohesion among teenagers in suicide prevention.
In addition, Dr Shanti Singh briefly elaborated on the areas that would be covered in her presentation at the symposium during a quick interview with this publication, some of these included: factors that lead to suicide and ways of addressing and preventing suicide as well as those who are affected.
“My task is to work with them so that there can be increased knowledge and understanding of factors that lead to suicide…there are some of the myths that you need to be very much aware of and be able to dispel. I think importantly, that it’s some of the myths that we don’t recognise and we take things for granted,” Dr Singh posited.
During a highly interactive session, the participants at the symposium were urged as teenagers to take their roles seriously in helping to prevent the widespread social issue, as they were involved in both group and individual presentations focusing on their views on suicide as teenagers.
The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) conducted a study in 2017, which found that the leading cause of death was suicide among persons between the ages of 15 to 24 years old, while most of the victims are male.
