Kids Helpline counsellors have reported increased crisis interventions related to children and young people making contact in 2023 with a total of 3,893 undertaken.
Of the total crisis interventions, 44 per cent, or 1,706, were related to suicide attempts, this was up from 37 per cent of crisis interventions for young people making contact with Kids Helpline counsellors about suicide in 2022.
This latest data emerged from the Kids Helpline 2023 Impact Report revealed this week, indicating that crisis/intervention contacts for children and young people in relation to suicide attempts have doubled in five years, from 825 in 2019 to 1,706 in 2023.
Tracy Adams, chief executive of yourtown, the organisation that runs Kids Helpline said many of their crisis/safety interventions – where immediate actions are required to alleviate harm (such as contacting an ambulance, police, child protection), occur when a young person is unable to act in a way to keep themselves safe, or they connect during a suicide attempt.
“Counsellors reported they made these safety interventions, on average, 10 times each day in 2023,” she said.
“Some young people who are planning/intending to possibly end their lives connect for support to stay safe. These young people often tell our counsellors, ‘I don’t want to die. I just don’t want to hurt anymore’. These resilient young people are often motivated to seek help by their reasons to live, which include people they care about, and thier hopes and dreams for the future. Our counsellors are experts at helping them through periods where they are most at-risk and helping them develop new coping skills to manage their mental health and suicidal thoughts in the long-term.
“As a service that provides personalised ongoing counselling for children and young people, we also act as part of an outside-of-hours ‘safety network’. Many at-risk young people make a ‘safety agreement’ with us, or with a face-to-face mental health professional such as a psychologist, to call Kids Helpline when they’re feeling unsafe. These young people may even call multiple times a week when in acute crisis – and our 24/7 service is one of the only services available to them at the times they most need crisis support. For some of these young people – especially those with complex mental health needs, and/or a history of childhood trauma, Kids Helpline counsellors are among the only people in their lives who consistently role model a positive, caring, respectful and supportive relationship, which plays a crucial role in their treatment and recovery.”
The newly released statistics in the 2023 Kids Helpline Impact Report also reveal that children and young people aged between 14 and 16 years of age are a high-risk group for a suicide attempt, noting that 329 required an ambulance or medical intervention in 2023. This represented the largest number of young people who required crisis/safety intervention support in relation to a suicide attempt.
Kids Helpline service manager Leo Hede said it is incredibly heartening when a young person reconnects – in some cases many years down the track – to tell Kids Helpline that their contact with a counsellor saved their life.
“We know that in the overwhelming majority of cases where a young person reaches out to us at a time to crisis, that the outcome for them is a positive one,” he said.
Ms Adams said suicide is a real issue amongst young people right now.
“Improved targeting of prevention and intervention strategies can reduce vulnerability to harm before it happens. It is important that we encourage young people to contact Kids Helpline for counselling support or engage with other service providers earlier,” she said.
“We hope the release of this Kids Helpline Impact Report will help to better understand what young people are experiencing today and their concerns, while encouraging greater information sharing so government and the community can work together to ensure that all is being done to keep children and young people safe.”
Kids Helpline is Australia’s only national 24/7 counselling service specifically for children and young people aged five to 25 years and is a service of yourtown – free call 1800 55 1800 or www.kidshelpline.com.au.
