Examining Suicide Stigma and Suicide Literacy

Abstract According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 800,000 individuals die from suicide; every 4 seconds, one person suicide. It is considered as a major public health issue by the WHO as it is the second leading cause of death among youth (15-29 years old) (WHO, 2019). WHO defines suicide as "the act of deliberately killing oneself" and self -harm as "an act with non-fatal outcome". Recent study in Dubai showed that 78% of the suicide cases were reported among Indian nationals; and suicide rates were seven times higher in expatriate community than the nationals. Particular, among single employed expatriate males (Dervic et al. 2012). The onset of mental health problems usually goes undetected, and as a consequence, one of the most outcomes of nontreatment or late detection of mental health issues is self-harm and/or suicide. One of the barriers for not seeking professional help is stigma towards mental illnesses. Knowledge about suicide, or suicide literacy, was another factor that was negatively contributing to the help seeking behavior. Evidence showed that lowering stigma by increasing suicide literacy has a positive impact on suicide prevention. The WHO Mental Health Action Plan sat a target of lowering the incidence of suicide by at least 10% over an 8-year period (WHO, 2014). Despite the raising prevalence of suicide and its major impact on individuals, families and the communities, research on suicide in the Middle East is limited. Without proper understanding of the suicide behavior, the surround environment and analyzing the suicide decedent profiles; the public health prevention efforts would fail to target those at higher risk. Up to date, there are no literature that examines suicide in oil and gas industry. This is a narrative review paper on suicide, with great focus on literature from the Middle East. The aim of this paper is to have better understanding of suicide behavior in order to improve the help-seeking attitude among those who are at higher risk within the industry. Also, to provide the discerning theoretical knowledge to support awareness efforts to increase suicide literacy and decrease stigma. Suicide is versatile and studying suicide to conclude "one-size-fits-all" recommendation is unworkable. The vast global literature concluded that suicide literacy is inversely linked to stigma and help-seeking behavior. Some geographical areas and professions showed higher number of suicide and work-related suicide in males than females. The nature of workplace culture and societal masculine norms may negatively influence men seeking help behavior. Substantial efforts are needed to build up a focused-prevention program that would effectively impact the suicide trajectory.