Announcements: World Suicide Prevention Day — September 10, 2020

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that suicide is a major public health problem that accounts for approximately 1 million deaths globally every year (1). The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study in China estimated that self-harm was the ninth leading cause of years of life lost (YLLs) in 1990 and was the thirteenth in 2017 (2). WHO statistics showed that suicide is the second leading cause of death in the group aged 15–29 years old (3).

The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) is a non-governmental organization which dedicated to preventing suicide and suicidal behavior, alleviating its effects, and providing a forum for academics, mental health professionals, crisis workers, volunteers and suicide survivors (4).

World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) on September 10 each year aims to raise awareness of suicide and suicide prevention. Inaugurated in 2003 by the IASP in collaboration with WHO, thousands of individuals and organizations from over 70 countries by 2019 participated in local WSPD seminars, fundraisers, walks, and other activities (4).

The theme for 2020 is “Working Together to Prevent Suicide”, which emphasizes the need for collaboration between community-based organizations and governmental organizations to reduce suicidal behavior.