step1

Step One
Name
Institutional Affiliation
Step One
Background and Statistics
While suicide is related to mental health according to most cultures and societal beliefs, Saurabh RamBihariLal Shrivastava and his colleagues reveal that suicide is a likely possibility to many individuals in the population and therefore a significant concern for the health and productivity of the community (Shrivastava et al., 2015). According to the analysis of the authors on public health strategies to ensure a reduction in the incidences of suicide, the potential risk factors range from mental disorders, depression along with substance abuse, to the common everyday situations that include financial crises, relationship failures in addition to chronic illnesses. Additional consideration includes exposure to violence. From the view of the factors, it is evident that all members of the population are at risk of suicide with common modes of committing suicide including the use of firearms, pesticides in addition to hanging.
Ultimately, the outcomes include a significant loss of lives, with the figures reaching a high of 45,000 lives within the United States in 2016 (Shrivastava et al., 2015). The burden of suicide the United States government included 93.5 billion dollars for the loss of productivity in addition to the cost of treating injuries for the failed attempts. The financial cost excludes the emotional cost to the survivors and their communities.
Why I chose the topic
From the analysis of the background and statistics surrounding suicide and its implication to the community, I realized that suicide is closer home than I may have allowed myself to believe.

While I may not be planning on ending my life through suicide, there is no telling the future course of events that might lead me in the direction of suicide. The entire population is exposed to the potential risk factors that contribute to suicide as detailed in the prior section. Therefore, everyone, including myself, my family, friends, and colleagues are in potential danger of succumbing to suicidal tendencies on a regular basis.
I, therefore, chose the topic because, unlike the grim reality, there is hope for the community through collaborative measures of different stakeholders in the health and social sectors. The report from the World Health Organisation on the national suicide prevention strategies reveals that suicide is a priority condition (World Health Organization, 2012). The report also reveals that suicide prevention, to avoid the loss of up to one million lives globally is achievable through collective responsibility led by the government and civil societies. The measures include educating the healthcare professionals as well as the public on the identification of behaviors that lead to suicide along with initiation of counter efforts in the risk populations (World Health Organization, 2012).
Conclusion
My analysis on the effects of suicide as a public health concern in addition to the strategies for prevention will thus contribute to disseminating the information from WHO and other international and local authorities to reduce the rates of suicide in the population. Additionally, the information from the topic is useful because it not only provides education to the public but also provides me with a level of exposure that will allow me to counter the occurrence of suicide in my community. Ultimately, suicide, according to WHO is a priority condition that affects not only the victim but also their communities (World Health Organization, 2012). While there are strategies for suicide prevention, most organizations and social settings have not established the mechanisms to benefit their communities. The investigation of the topic will thus improve the level of prevention in the community and alleviate the medical, psychological and economic cost of suicide.
References
Shrivastava, R. S., Shrivastava, P. S & Ramasamy, J. (2015). Public health strategies to ensure reduction in suicide incidence in middle and low income nations. J Neurosci Rural Pract. 2015 Oct-Dec; 6(4): 619–621, Retrieved from HYPERLINK “https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4692033/” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4692033/
World Health Organization. (2012). Public Health Action For The Prevention Of Suicide; A framework. WHO Press, World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland, Retrieved from http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/75166/9789241503570_eng.pdf?sequence=1