Second Chance Matters
This morning, an email from a friend found in the inbox drew our attention. The subject line was “New Surgeon General Advisory Raises Alarm about the Devastating Impact of the Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation in the United States.” Receiving this email during this week made this message in particular purposeful.
History of Suicide Prevention Awareness
Suicide became a central issue in the United States in the mid-1990s. A Surgeon General at the time, David Satcher, made his call to action on suicide prevention during the Reno Conference in Nevada and prioritized this issue as a public health target. The first World Suicide Prevention Day was launched in 2003 in Stockholm as part of the IASP (international association for suicide prevention) and WHO’s initiatives. National Suicide Prevention Week is the Monday through Sunday surrounding World Suicide Prevention Day. American Association of Suicidology organized this weeklong campaign along with other health professionals since 2011.
Continue reading through the Surgeon General’s letter and its associated links; we realized CDC also has an advisory page on how we should prevent suicidal behavior. They laid out comprehensive plans, such as strengthening financial support, creating a protective environment, etc. These plans all seem feasible, yet we cannot stop pondering: if these are the suicidal antidote, why do we still see people take their lives regardless of age and social status?
“Often people engage in suicidal thinking or suicidal behavior because they feel they can no longer withstand the psychological and emotional pain that they are currently in,” says Psychology Today. These words resonated with our life experience and reminded us of a WELL feature.
“To support and encourage help-seeking for individuals experiencing a mental health crisis through availability and access to service, and to encourage stakeholders to consider and implement reasonable design interventions to support these individuals.” — WELL CRI, Mental Health Crisis Support.
One of the crisis support was Hotspot Management. What is a “hotspot,” you might ask. A suicide hotspot has two definitions. One refers to a geographical area with a relatively high rate of suicide among its resident population; the other refers to a specific site frequently used as a location for suicide.
An effective way of managing a suicide hotspot is to raise a physical barrier because raising barriers restricts individuals’ access to harmful means and prevents suicide attempts. New York University’s Bobst Library is an example. The library installed 20-foot-tall perforate aluminum screens after the student’s second suicide case happened in the atrium area.
Loneliness was rising even before the pandemic. Suicidal behavior, which doesn’t happen in other species, can be traced since human history was written. We all have experienced temporary crises and impulsive suicidal thoughts at some point in our lifetime. Making it hard to approach is a way of “buying time” and helping us with the second chance to consider.
On this melancholy week, we dedicate this card to whoever experiences a life crisis, hotspot patrols, planners, and designers. Because of them, we know we are not alone and can live under the grace of a second chance.
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By the way, the Elmer Holmes Bobst Library is located on the New York University Campus. It faces Washington Square Park and is adjacent to the University’s Woodland Garden. Besides its fascinating pixel-shaped panels surrounding the hotspot, the atrium is also an essential topic in the building code. Since the shopping mall emerged in the suburbs during the 1960s, its central multi-stories-height space became a fire and safety design focus. Section 404 of the International Building Code is designated for atrium design. It includes many safety requirements, such as placing sprinkler systems, smoke control systems, fire rating to separate spaces or maximum travel distance, etc.
