A suicide prevention organization based in Victoria has received enough funding to remain open until the end of December, but NEED2 is still waiting for a long-term solution to its funding crisis.

The organization appealed to the public for support in March and area municipalities, the United Way and B.C. Gaming provided enough funding for the organization to extend services for six months.

B.C.’s Ministry of Children and Family Development is currently reviewing its 2010 decision to cut NEED2’s suicide prevention funding and Jane Arnott, NEED2’s executive director, says she is hopeful that some funding will be renewed.

A response from the ministry seemed similarly positive. “We have been working closely with them to reach an agreement that will allow them to continue their exemplary work with vulnerable kids,” says Shae Greenfield, a communications officer.

Arnott says the organization needs a yearly budget of $300,000 to maintain its suicide prevention programs.

According to a 2007 report by the B.C. Coroners Service, suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth aged 12 to 18 in B.C.

A 2008 voluntary survey of 29,440 high school students in B.C. by the McCreary Centre Society found that more than 3,500 youth had seriously considered suicide and more than 1,400 had attempted suicide. The McCreary Centre Society is non-profit based in Vancouver that conducts community research on youth health issues.

The B.C. Coroners’ report investigated the 81 youth suicides that occurred between 2003 and 2007 in the province and found that most youth who had died by suicide suffered from at least one of three main risk factors. Thirty youth had suffered from an on-going mental health problem, 29 had suffered from dysfunctional personal relationships and 17 had suffered from a stressful and life changing event, but didn’t suffer from family or mental health problems.

The report made several recommendations for suicide prevention strategies, including programs directed at promoting mental health awareness.

“Suicide prevention is really about addressing the silence and stigma that still exists around suicide,” says Arnott, “the stigma that still surrounds mental illness. I think that's important work to be done in any community.”

NEED2 shifted its focus to its youth suicide prevention and education last summer, after the Vancouver Island Health Authority cut funding for its general crisis line. VIHA had decided to consolidate crisis line funding into an Island-wide line based in Nanaimo.

NEED2 provides presentations for high school students as part of its Suicide Awareness for Youth program, a strategy Brenda Ann Taylor, the communications director for the Centre for Suicide Prevention based in Calgary, says is important.

"It's one thing to try to intervene when an individual is in the process of deciding to die by suicide; it's another thing to get to them before that starts, that's why we believe that prevention programs are important," she says.

The program focuses on developing awareness of youth depression and suicide, recognizing the signs of suicide and the various resources that are available to youth who are considering suicide.

NEED2 also offers an online support service, www.Youthspace.ca, where youth under 25 years old can access various support services including a discussion board, one-on-one live chat and email counselling with a youth counsellor at the Pacific Centre Family Services Association.

Ainslie Cruickshank is completing a practicum at The Tyee.