WE can save lives. That is the message from the Mental Health Council of Tasmania before Mental Health Week.

Organisation chief executive Connie Digolis said an important step in suicide prevention was for everyone to think about mental health and well-being in general.

‘‘If we can invest resources and funding into effective early intervention and mental health promotion initiatives that build resilience in our communities and reduce the stigma around suicide and mental health,  that is a strategy that has been proven to work,’’ she said.

‘‘With Mental Health Week officially starting on Sunday, there is an opportunity for us to encourage people to start the conversation about mental health in their community right now and then continue to talk about it and take action to improve your own mental health long after the week is over.

‘‘A focus on the individual is where improving mental health for all Tasmanians needs to start.’’

A number of organisations exist to help individuals, communities and families both prevent and deal with suicide deaths.

National youth mental health service Headspace has teams in each state and territory that work with schools to ensure their preparedness for such a loss.

Headspace School Support national clinical adviser Karen Fletcher explained that staff would make contact with schools ahead of a death to ensure the school was well-equipped to respond.

‘‘I think unfortunately a lot of schools think it won’t happen to them, but it does,’’ she said.

‘‘The earlier we can get in, the less risk there is.’’

Ms Fletcher said it was important that schools felt empowered in talking about suicide with students and emphasised the importance of including a positive help-seeking message in any discussion.

‘‘The less of a taboo talking about suicide is the better,’’ she said.

‘‘You do need to do them carefully ... (but) shutting down conversations with young people is making it less likely they’ll talk about it when they need to.’’

Another national organisation is ready to help 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

StandBy Response works to provide families and communities with whatever they need to deal with a suicide.

Linking in with emergency services, StandBy Response has a presence throughout Tasmania and provides support ranging from providing food to bereaved families to leading community discussions.

Ms Fisher said every suicide had a huge impact, with research showing that each individual death affected an average of 100 people.

‘‘It is a powerful message to people going through a terrible time of loss that people care ,’’ StandBy Response national service co-ordinator Jill Fisher said.

‘‘People do really want to help –  they just don’t know what to say or do.

‘‘Often the best thing you can say is ‘I don’t know what to say but I’m here for you’.’’

The Mental Health Council’s Ms Digolis encouraged everyone to take steps to ensure they felt mentally healthy and seek help when things were not going so well.

‘‘If we can address the mental health needs of everyone at every stage in our lives, we can prevent suicide. We can save lives.’’

■If you need immediate assistance or support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. For further information about mental health and suicide, contact the SANE Australia helpline on 1800 18 SANE (7263), sane.org or lifeline.org.au, or talk to your local GP, health professional or someone you trust. If it is an emergency, call 000.