The Taipei County Government inaugurated a community mental health center yesterday to offer help to those considering suicide or who are suffering from mental disorders.
The center was opened after five members of a family of six from Taipei committed suicide one after another in less than four months.
At the opening ceremony, Taipei County Commissioner Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋) said suicide had become the sixth most common cause of death in Taipei County.
Chou said the county government had already set up a telephone hotline to offer counseling to those in need.
Tai Chuan-wei (戴傳文), deputy director of the Department of Health (DOH) suicide prevention center, noted that family members are best able to identify if someone is suicidal.
Citing the example of the six-member family, in which the father and his adult daughter jumped into a river in August, Tai claimed that if people showed more concern for other members of their families, "tragedies would not occur again."
The mother of the family killed herself and her two sons on Sunday, jumping into the same river where her husband and daughter died.
Tai said that he had high expectations for the mental health center.
According to Tai, the people most likely to attempt suicide are in the 16-24 age group, with most suicide deaths occurring among the elderly.
Chiang Hung-chi (江弘基), deputy executive officer of the DOH's suicide prevention center, noted that some 45 percent of suicide victims had revealed their intention in advance. However, 70 percent of family members believed they were not serious, Chiang added.
Chiang urged families and friends not to ignore threats of suicide.
According to government statistics, the World Health Organization (WHO) has listed depression as one of the three biggest diseases of the 21st century, with suicide the ninth most common cause of death in Taiwan last year.
Hsu Ming-neng (許銘能), director of the Taipei County Government's Health Department, said the mental health center would hold seminars and other activities to allow the public to better understand various mental illnesses and teach them techniques to relieve stress.
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