July 7, 2016
If you are a farmer or work anywhere in agriculture, you know – or know of – someone who has taken their life.
Which is why the National Centre for Farmer Health has launched a new website to learn what is happening in rural Australia, and how regional communities are thinking about suicide.
The Ripple Effect website enables farmers to anonymously register and view other farmers’ stories of suicide, share their own insights and find out what they can do to support the wellbeing of others and themselves.
“We are looking to help build the first accurate, national insight into what is in the minds of our farmers, what are their stories and opinions, and get that to the people who can help make a difference,” the Ripple Effect’s Alison Kennedy said
“Suicide is so incredibly tragic and in most cases preventable.
“If people realise there are solutions, and understand life can go on, then we can help make change.
“Too many families and friends of people who have killed themselves have had to survive the fallout, and the ripple effect of such a loss tears apart the fabric of families and communities.”
Ms Kennedy said if agricultural Australia is going to turn back the tide of suicide in farming communities, it needs support – but it will not get that right unless it has the right information.
The Ripple Effect has been developed by NCFH, Deakin University, Victorian Farmers Federation, AgChatOZ, Mental Illness Fellowship North Queensland, Sandpit and Western District Health Service as part of beyondblue’s STRIDE Project (with donations from the Movember Foundation).
“The cumulative stress of modern-day farming, juggling debt and volatile commodity markets, climate change, family pressures, illness and injury, and dealing with it all in the isolation of the average working day puts farmers at a higher risk of suicide,” Ms Kennedy said.
“Everyone knows about it, for years everyone has danced around it, always too concerned to talk openly about it … you can die of anything except your own hand because at that point no-one really knows what to do next,” she said.
“And that’s the problem – no-one really knows enough about anything.
“We are really hoping we can tap into the experiences of our farmers, everywhere across the country, and hear about the things they rarely, if ever, tell anyone else.
“And every bit of anonymous information will be processed and analysed so we can get it to everyone who can help.”
- External link: The Ripple Effect
