The document summarizes research conducted to develop resources for guiding conversations about suicide prevention in Aboriginal communities. Consultations were held with Aboriginal stakeholders and community members to understand perspectives on discussing suicide. Barriers like stigma, trauma and lack of culturally appropriate services were identified. The resources developed provide guidance for prevention-focused, intervention-focused, and postvention-focused conversations. Next steps involve identifying organizations to pilot the resources and building capacity in communities and services to support ongoing discussions about suicide.

1. Conversations Matter when discussing suicide in
Aboriginal communities
Jaelea Skehan & Alexandra Culloden
conversationsmatter.com.au

2. A leading national organisation dedicated to reducing mental illness
and suicide and improving wellbeing for all Australians

3. Acknowledgements
• HIMH staff that lead the work – Todd Heard, Jennifer Robinson
• Project working group and three local working groups
• Recruiting partners – Biripi AMS, Awabakal AMS, Aboriginal health
and mental health workers from HNELHD
• Service providers and community members that participated in the
consultation and continue to work with HIMH
• NSW Ministry of Health & NSW Mental Health Commission.

4. Project Overview
• Funded under the NSW Suicide Prevention Strategy 2010-2015
• Developed by the Hunter Institute of Mental Health
• AIM: to develop resources to guide safe and effective
conversations about suicide
• FOR: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; people from
culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds; gay, lesbian,
bisexual, and transgender people; young people; older people;
males.

5. Generate evidence through
analysis of current approaches,
consultation with experts and
communities, and using a
measurable approach to finalise
resources
It has never been developed or
evaluated before and the
research evidence is limited and
conflicting with many variables
to be tested
The problem The approach

6. Talking about suicide
• Suicide is an important issue of community concern
• It is important that as a community we are engaged with the issue
• Often confusion about what is meant by “discussing” or “talking
about” suicide, and confusion about the evidence
• Need to ensure we are not “too afraid” to talk about suicide, while
respecting and understanding the risks.

7. The risk associated with the “discussion” seems to be related to:
 The focus of the information (about death, about how to cope with
a death, about the broader issue)
 The status of the individual receiving the information (little interest,
vulnerable, bereaved by suicide)
 The format they receive the information (face-to-face, media)
 The place they receive the information.

8. Lenses considered
• Why? = Focus of discussion
– Prevention, Intervention or Postvention
• How? = Format of discussion
– One-on-one, small group, wide-scale (e.g. media)
• Where? = Setting
– School, Workplace, Families, Community, Online, Media
• Who? = Target groups to be considered
– Carers, GLBTI, Young People, Older People, Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander People, CALD Communities, People with a mental illness, People
Living in Rural and Remote Areas, Men, People Bereaved by Suicide.

9. Approach
Literature Review
• Review of research evidence
• Review and analysis of existing
resources and approaches
Consultations
• Service providers and key
informants across four settings
• Consultations with community
Core Principles
Three review panels (experts, target groups, settings) reviewed a series of ‘principles’ to guide
conversations focussed on: prevention, intervention and postvention
Online resources
• Community resources for discussing suicide (tailored resources for Aboriginal communities)
• Professional resources to support community discussion of suicide

10. Aboriginal consultations
Aim: to engage with Aboriginal stakeholders and community members to
collect information about their professional and personal views on
discussing suicide.
Strategy 1: Stakeholder forums
Strategy 2: Community focus groups.
* Both had ethics approval through HNEHREC & AH&MRC

11. Strategy 1: stakeholder forums
• Attended by 38 participants across the three locations: Awabakal
community in Newcastle; Gomeroi community in Tamworth; Biripi
community in Taree
• Participants: 70% female; 90% heterosexual; 60% personally affected;
60% Aboriginal
• Forum facilitated by an Aboriginal psychologist with support from two
other Aboriginal health workers
• Group activities included:
– Identification of key issues, priority target groups & key influencers
– Identification of opportunities, risks and barriers
– Key considerations for format and dissemination.

12. Forum outcomes
• Young people identified as a priority, but groups believed whole of
community was important
• Prevention conversation (general awareness) and support for
intervention conversations seen as most important
• Need to identify and support ‘natural gatekeepers’
• Communities would need to feel a sense of ownership over the
resources
• The resources should complement and support existing programs and
services
• Focussing on protective factors and hope was important

13. Forum outcomes (cont.)
• Stigma and shame were major barriers across communities
• Trauma, grief and loss has major impacts on communities
• Shortage of Aboriginal staff and services was seen as a barrier to
dissemination and uptake
• Building capacity of services and communities was integral to success
• Aboriginal people to be involved in developing the resources.

14. Strategy 2: Community focus groups
• To engage with Aboriginal community members to collect information
about their personal views on discussing suicide
• Aboriginal people from the Biripi and Gomeroi communities (n=14)
• Facilitated by an Aboriginal psychologist
• Focus groups were asked to discuss:
– whether or not they think it is important to talk about suicide; the types of
conversations that they think are already occurring; the types of
conversations they think might be the most important to have; the reasons
why people might not be able to talk about suicide; and the things that
they think would assist people to have conversations.

15. Focus group outcomes
• People in Aboriginal communities need to be encouraged to talk
about suicide as they rarely occurred
“I think it is important…because we never talk about it. We need to
understand.”
• Supporting families and communities after a suicide was seen as
important
“After the funeral, everyone goes their separate ways, and then everyone
tries to go on…”
“they say it’s a part of life and ‘get on with it’…but it’s truly not part of life in
Aboriginal culture”

16. Focus group outcomes (cont)
• Shame, stigma and reluctance to seek help were identified as major
barriers
“…they get shamed because of the stigma…they go, I’m not ‘naragah’, I’m
not ‘womba’…”
• Services are not culturally aware enough to be helpful or engaging
“…the services…the helplines…you may as well sit down and talk to
yourself”
• There is a strong fear of making things worse
“…they are frightened to talk to them in case they push them over the edge”

17. Focus group outcomes (cont.)
• Building trust and relationships is important
“we need to have someone they trust, someone they can form a relationship
with…”
• Resources need to address the fear of talking
“help us overcome the fear, help us to sit down and have the
conversations…it’s gotta be all right to talk”
• People need skills and confidence
“we need to put it out in a workshop that can educate and put it out there”

18. Reports available online at:
www.conversationsmatter.com.au

19. conversationsmatter.com.au
The resources will assist communities when:
• They want to know how to talk about
suicide more generally
• They are worried about someone and
want to know what to say and do
• There has been a death and they want to
know how best to handle individual and
community level conversations.
These resources have
been designed for
community level
conversations and not for
clinical or health related
conversations.
Prevention-focused
conversations
Intervention-focused
conversations
Postvention-focused
conversations
Resource development

20. Next steps
1. Identify gate-keepers and identify pilot organisations for more
comprehensive support (and evaluation)
2. Develop Capacity building plan
3. Implement Plan with targeted organisations, including professional
develop and support for engaging communities
4. Support ongoing communities of practice around the Conversations
Matter resources.
conversationsmatter.com.au

21. www.himh.org.au
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www.conversationsmatter.com.au