#ThereIsHelp: Twitter launches search prompt to prevent suicides, self harm
What's the story
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people around the world die by suicide. The action, caused by several factors, has grown to be a major cause of concern. And now, to extend a helping hand, microblogging giant Twitter is working on an initiative aimed at preventing instances of suicides and self-harm. Here's all you need to know about it.
Initiative
New search prompt to mark World Suicide Prevention Day
To mark the World Suicide Prevention Day, Twitter has launched a new search prompt with the hashtag #ThereIsHelp. With this, as and when someone looks up 'suicide', 'self-harm', or related keywords on Twitter Search, the service will show a series of links to connect them with credible Indian authorities and groups working toward suicide prevention.
Partner
Work with National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences
On the results page, Twitter will show credible information through lists and a prominent button to reach out to suicide prevention groups. The button will redirect to the website of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS), where you can find resources for help, while the list will show frequently updated suicide prevention helplines active across different parts of India.
Availability
Working across all the platforms
The search prompt works on the Android and iOS app of Twitter as well as the website of the service, in both Hindi and English languages. Some of the keywords that will show the prompt include #CommitSuicide, #EndLife, #HowtoHangMyself, #Howtohangyourself, #PainlessDeath, #Suicidal, #SuicideAttempt, #SuicideMethods, #SuicideNote, #SuicideSupport etc. Twitter has previously used this prompt to help people find reliable information on other critical issues.
Impact
Every year, 800,000 people die by suicide
As per WHO, every year, close to 800,000 people die due to suicide, which is one person every 40 seconds. "There are indications that for each adult who died by suicide there may have been more than 20 others attempting suicide," the organization says, adding that certain interventions can prevent suicides. This is where the sources highlighted by Twitter come in.