A study by the Ministry of Education (Meduca) revealed that around 35 suicide attempts are registered monthly in schools in the Republic of Panama, informed Telemetro Reporta, Vadín Moreno, Meduca’s psychosocial specialist.
“It is a huge number that must be considered and analyzed,” said the specialist in psychoeducational services from the Ministry of Education, after learning that this same analysis showed that 800 cases of suicidal ideation have also been reported in elementary, middle and high school children.
He indicated that there is a difference between suicidal ideation and suicide attempt; but that in the case of a suicide attempt they must take action at once, for which they have a team that follows up on the cases that are identified.
Suicidal ideation is thoughts about wanting to take one’s life, with or without planning or method; while the suicide attempt is the act itself of deliberately taking one’s own life.
He stressed that these identified cases are regularly referred to the Ministry of Health (Minsa) or the Social Security Fund (CSS) so that they are given the proper treatment in terms of mental health.
According to Moreno, the identified cases are being given individual follow-up. “These cases cannot be worked on in a group, sometimes they are very particular. Follow-up is being given to these 800 cases and the vast majority have been referred to health centers and the CSS,” she said.
