This World Suicide Prevention Day, the Bayanihan for WellBeing (BWB) Collaborative urges every Filipino to join conversations on mental health and suicide through the event “Together We Can: Preventing Suicide As One.”

The BWB Collaborative was convened in 2020 by Unilab Foundation’s Heads Up PH Program to address surging cases of mental health issues in the country through a multidisciplinary, multilevel and holistic approach.

Among its founding members are the Philippine Guidance and Counseling Association, Psychological Association of the Philippines, Philippine Psychiatric Association, Philippine Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Philippine Pediatric Society.

The online event aims to convene stakeholders and mental health advocates to raise awareness of the threat suicide poses in our society today, while leading conversations on how to properly address this in the time of a global pandemic.

In the Philippines, mental health issues and suicide cases continue to rise, especially among the youth.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (2020), over 27 million Filipino learners from public and private schools and over 880,000 educators from public schools are affected by this crisis.

Competing health problems, financial setbacks, stigma and poor understanding of the issue also contribute to the low prioritization of suicide prevention.

The Global School-based Student Health Survey (2015) revealed that 16.8 percent of Filipino students aged 13-17 years have attempted suicide, and 11.6 percent seriously considered attempting suicide during the 12 months before the survey.

The event will tackle the situation of mental health in the Philippines and present various actions and initiatives on suicide prevention and intervention.

Participating are speakers from organizations such as the World Health Organization-Philippines, Disease Prevention and Control Bureau-Essential Non-Communicable Disease Division of the Department of Health, the University of Hong Kong, the Asian Institute of Management, and other mental health experts and advocates.

The event also marks the launch of the Race Against Suicide Toolkit, a manual that aims to provide a more holistic approach to suicide prevention and mental health wellness in schools.

This tool kit was created by mental health professionals with Dr. Kenneth Ross Javate, a child, adolescent and adult psychiatrist, as its principal author.

It is for use by teachers, guidance counselors and school administrators in their own school communities, to enable them to efficiently recognize and refer learners at risk for suicide.

The tool kit will be turned over to various government agencies during the event.

Additionally, results of the Asian Institute of Management’s study on the health landscape in the country, Project Ligaya (funded by Unilab Foundation), will also be presented.

“Together We Can: Preventing Suicide As One” is free and open to all. It will be on Sept. 10, 10 a.m.-12 noon; register at bit.ly/TogetherWeCanRegForm; watch the livestream at the Bayanihan for WellBeing Facebook page on facebook.com/BayanihanForWellBeing.