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The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, has presented Line 024, Attention to Suicidal Behaviour, with the motto “Call to life”, which will work from today, May 10, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. week, 365 days a year.
Mental Health is a priority objective of the public policies of the Government of Spain and, therefore, is part of the Public Agenda to make this visible and end the stigmas and taboos that exist around this reality, to break the silences on this subject.
Line 024 will be free, accessible, immediate, confidential and will be staffed by experts, to support both people who may have suicidal tendencies and their families and friends.
In addition, 024 will be connected to the emergency services of the different autonomous communities and cities to help those whose suffering takes them to the limit of their strength, because, explained Darias, “a person with suicidal behavior does not want to die, but who wants to stop suffering”.
Suicide is the leading cause of external death in Spain and the leading cause of death in young people and, according to INE data, in 2020 there were 3,491 deaths by suicide in Spain, which was 7.4% more than in 2019 The Minister of Health has underlined that the 024 telephone number is a commitment of the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, and a demand from society, which has increased in recent years.
For the development of Line 024, as well as future actions carried out in the area of suicide prevention, an Advisory Committee has been created, made up of experts from different areas, who will contribute experience and knowledge and taking into account all perspectives and all possible voices, the minister pointed out.
Care by experts
The 024 Suicidal Behaviour Hotline will have the participation of experts to intervene in complex high-risk situations.
In a first phase, the telephone will be managed by the Red Cross, while the Ministry of Health continues with the definitive tender for the service. The 024 team will have a person in charge of the service, 11 supervisors and 26 operators, all of them with experience and knowledge in managing this type of intervention.
With the aim that all citizens can use the 024 in conditions of equality and non-discrimination, the telephone is adapted and will include a video interpreting service in sign language, as well as a telephone interpreting service that offers the solution to overcome the language barriers allowing communication in real time, with people who speak in another language.
Other initiatives
The implementation of Line 024 is thus added to other initiatives of the Ministry of Health in the field of Mental Health, the Specialty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, or the Mental Health Action Plan, endowed with 100 million euros, and which will be debated in the next plenary session of the Interterritorial Council of the National Health System (CISNS).
In this same sense, the Ministry of Health, together with the autonomous communities and cities, recently updated the Mental Health Strategy of the National Health System, with the participation of scientific societies, patient and family associations, who today also wanted to participate in the presentation of 024.
Translation and some editing on this post had been carried out on this information provided by the government of Spain.
