In the world, every 40 seconds a person takes his or her own life, while in Peru, every 22 minutes someone attempts suicide, a critical situation that requires immediate medical attention.
Since 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Association for Suicide Prevention established September 10 as World Suicide Prevention Day with the aim of raising awareness, promoting and implementing actions to prevent the act by which a person intentionally causes death.
In Peru, one of the most forgotten, excluded and marginalized groups by society, prisoners of acts of discrimination, stigmas, violence that could trigger suicides, is the LGBT community, who are up to 4 times more likely to attempt suicide.
Risk factors in suicide
According to, Maria Amézquita, a psychologist with the Mental Health Program at Socios En Salud, indicated that there are multiple factors that trigger suicide:
“Determining the reasons for suicide is a complex problem, because each person has different circumstances; however, these factors range from psychological, biological, social and environmental aspects, and are usually accompanied by a clinical picture of mental health, the most common being depression, which over time will increase the discomfort,” she added.
Mental health care to prevent suicide in LGTB community
At Socios En Salud we provide comprehensive, equitable and quality health care to all people, regardless of their nationality, gender identity, age, class or others to minimize risk factors that affect clinical, emotional, psychological and social well-being.
The mental health specialist recommends identifying the different warning signs, so that we can detect and treat them in time before a tragedy.
She also added that there are several factors associated with a person’s natural gender characteristics and identity that harm the mental and emotional well-being of transgender people throughout their lives. For example: high levels of discrimination, violence, isolation and exclusion that can be the source of severe insecurity and severe anxiety, a condition also known as “gender dysphoria”.
Recommendations to prevent suicide
If we observe some or several warning signs, try to communicate with the person or notify a trusted family member or friend to ensure and provide adequate emotional support; however, it is necessary to encourage him/her to receive help from a mental health professional from a Health Center or a Community Mental Health Center in his/her community to assess the severity and risk that the person is exposed to.
From Socios En Salud we reaffirm our commitment to contribute to the welfare and care of those who need us most, so we perform the search and evaluation of signs and symptoms that cause depression, anxiety, violence, etc. through the use of technologies to care for and recover the mental health of the most vulnerable.
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