Thread by @OmayraIssa

Dispatches from the Prairies
On #SuicidePreventionDay, facts in #Saskatchewan
A Thread
1/ Overall suicide rates are four times higher in the Indigenous population than in the province's general population. #skpoli

2/ The @fsinations analyzed coroner's reports from suicides in Saskatchewan between 2005 and 2016 and concluded that a First Nations teen girl is 29 times more likely to kill herself than a non-Indigenous teen girl.

3/ Tristen Durocher is a 24-year-old Métis man from Northern Sask. He recently walked more than 600 kilometres to Regina, where he set up a teepee and began a 44 days ceremonial fast to call for a legislated suicide prevention plan. #SuicidePrevention #skpoli

4/ I spoke to Durocher a couple of days ago. He said he was in good spirits and won’t give up until the end of his fast. The Saskatchewan government is seeking a court order to remove his teepee in the Wascana park. #skpoli #SuicidePrevention

5/ The Saskatchewan government released a suicide prevention plan called Pillars for Life, but critics say it lacks teeth because it's not entrenched in law. #skpoli #SuicidePrevention #SuicidePreventionDay

6/ In Saskatchewan, Black communities are calling for race based data on suicide and culturally adapted services. The province doesn’t track suicide rates in Black communities.

7/ The recent death of 20-year-old athlete Samwel Uko has prompted calls for culturally specific services to Black communities. To this date, the province won’t say if those services are available. I asked them about it. #skpoli #SuicidePrevention

8/ The Saskatchewan Health Authority apologized to Uko’s family for failing to provide the young man with adequate mental health services at the Regina General Hospital, while he was in the throes of a mental health crisis. #SuicidePrevention #SuicidePreventionDay

9/ A conclusion among many: conversations about mental health and suicide will benefit from centering race, in #Saskatchewan. #skpoli #SuicidePrevention

10/ Where to get help:
Canada Suicide Prevention Service: 1-833-456-4566
In Quebec: Association québécoise de prévention du suicide: 1-866-277-3553
Kids Help Phone: [phone]

#SuicidePrevention #SuicidePreventionDay