The Ministry of Social Development and Family Services launched its national suicide prevention hotline on Wednesday.

Minister Donna Cox said the 800-COPE hotline received 59 calls in a month, even before its launch.

“The ministry’s hotline, 800-COPE (2673), has received 59 calls within one month and this level of engagement occurred despite (the fact that) we did not really advertise the hotline as yet…

“While to some this number may appear modest, the significance of each life saved through this hotline cannot be overstated,” she said.

She said the hotline is already in operation and there was a pilot run. There is a co-ordinator and assistant co-ordinator for the unit. The pilot scheme began about six months ago.

She said there were plans to launch in January, but when she recognised all the unit’s staffing requirements had not been met, she told them to wait.

Cabinet had already approved the structure, Cox told Newsday after the launch.

Cox said there are six active listeners at the moment, with the intent to hire more.

The ministry has to justify the expenditure for more and so the ministry intends to have its monitoring and evaluation department collect the data, and then take it back to Cabinet.

The launch took place at the Maraval Community Centre, Morne Coco Road.

Cox, independent senator and psychiatrist Dr Varma Deyalsingh andpermanent secretary in the Ministry of Social Development and Family Services Lenor Baptiste-Simmons spoke at the event.

Attorney Shaquilla Daniel shared her testimony about suicide, and poet Zakiya Gill and gospel artiste Sean Daniel shared a poem and song.

Cox said, “Today we gather to address the critical issue of mental health and to provide a lifeline of support to those in our society who are struggling.

“And we acknowledge that despite decades of destigmatisation efforts, mental health, in general, and suicide in particular remains a taboo topic, often met with silence and discomfort.”

She said discussions about the topic were often uncomfortable but its impact was far-reaching, affecting not only immediate family but the wider community.

Cox said the ministry recognised suicide as a national public health concern which required urgent and immediate attention.

Citing World Health Organization statistics, Cox said more than 700,000 people die by suicide annually.

She said statistics from the police showed 75 people died by suicide in 2018; 92 in 2019; 104 in 2020; 127 in 2021; 142 in 2022; and 21 up to March this year.

Cox added the data showed a high number of senior people died by suicide. Given that the Division of Ageing was under the ministry’s remit, it had to look at those figures, she said.

“In 2018, 11 people 60 or older died by suicide; in 2019, 13; in 2020, 26; in 2021, 16; in 2022, 32 and as of March 2023 six people.

She added that 561 people died by suicide in TT in just over five years.

She said the statistics increasingly pointed to the need for additional and active prevention strategies. The hotline was one such resp