Suicide is not simply a typology of violence. All forms of violence are interrelated, and preventative action should tackle the common antecedents to all. Understanding what these are, and how they differ between regions and cultures, is key to developing effective violence prevention strategies that extend beyond suicide. In this chapter we discuss the relationship between suicide and other forms of violence including analysis of data from the World Health Organization. We then consider factors influencing volume and direction of violence including gender, poverty, drug and alcohol misuse, adverse childhood experiences, war, and natural disasters. Before finally moving on to preventative action that considers all forms of violence under the same framework. Throughout the chapter real-world examples will be given for important concepts with particular reference to self-immolation in South Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean Region as it is the authors’ area of research expertise.

This chapter describes the Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) and the mhGAP-Intervention Guide (mhGAP-IG) developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), aimed at scaling up suicide prevention and management services to bridge unmet need.The mhGAP-IG is an evidence-based tool for mental disorders with structured and operationalised guidelines for clinical decision-making targeting non-specialist community and primary care workers in low and middle-income countries (LMICs).

The aim of this book is to provide evidence to inform the development and implementation of suicide prevention globally. It covers a range of topics that are relevant from local to national levels. It has an unapologetic emphasis on social determinants of suicide and a global perspective, with utility across the world as a primary resource by practitioners and policymakers. It aims at accessibility, with an emphasis on what can be achieved given the current knowledge base.

A central message of this book is the importance of using rigorous evidence to guide suicide prevention, whilst recognising that the best evidence is always partial. Key research is cited in the text and readers are, in places, directed to public-domain digital resources. The book aims to have relevance in low- and middle-income countries, as well as in high-income countries. It is not a country-by-country international overview.

Before examining how the regulation of bioethical matters impacts the equal right to live in the world for people with impairments, Chapter 1 elaborates on key concepts relevant for the book’s later chapters: disability, eugenics, ableism, and neoliberalism. It begins with a critical discussion of the medical and social models of disability, the two dominant approaches to understanding disability in disability studies. The chapter also highlights the troubled recent history of eugenics, the concept of ableism and the persistence of ableist policies and practices, as well as the importance and shortcomings of disability rights laws in furthering disability justice and equality.

Beyond the demographic factors of socio-economic disadvantage, inequality and unemployment, some occupations have been historically linked with higher rates of suicide deaths. These include: the armed forces, farmers, healthcare workers (including doctors), and “blue light” emergency workers, or “first responders,” for example, police, ambulance, rescue and fire personnel. Where available, the chapter draws upon systematic reviews and meta-analyses to discuss the evidence in specific occupational groups; the risk indicators and protective factors for suicide at individual, organisational and systemic level; and potential interventions over the course of a worker’s career. Understanding occupational risk factors over the career span from recruitment, self-selection and selection, through work environments and cultures, occupational trauma and stresses, could yield strategies for more generalisable suicide prevention at a population level as well as reducing rates in specific occupations.