Introduction
Suicide Prevention Australia (SPA) provides national leadership for the suicide prevention sector in Australia. SPA is the lead agency/ peak body of the National Coalition for Suicide Prevention, and in this role is responsible for building and facilitating communication, collaboration and partnerships across and between the nonprofit, health, private and government sectors in order to change behaviors and attitudes towards suicide prevention.
Suicide is the third leading cause of premature death in Australia and yet it receives far less attention and funding than other similar causes. Our work provided a great opportunity to make a real difference to the Australian community, to provide a strong, rational and well-argued case to increase funding towards proven ways of reducing death by suicideAnthony Bice
Scope
Zero Suicide is a commitment to suicide prevention in health and behavioral health care systems. The concept of Zero Suicide has been adopted in selective overseas geographies however there is no clear articulation of the costs, benefits and requirements for making Zero Suicide a success in Australia. In our project we developed a business case for the piloting of a Zero Suicide program within selected Australian health networks, covering overall pilot objectives and design, operating model considerations, target outcomes and a cost/benefit analysis which showed a clear case for achieving funding.
This project has proven to be one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences of our careers. Zero Suicide is a truly altruistic cause – and we are delighted to have had such impactful involvement in suicide prevention across Australia. Social Impact projects such as this, are a true testament to Oliver Wyman’s values – and has been exemplary of our constant strive to make lasting a contributionGleb Shinkarsky
Expected Impact*
We expect this project to help secure funding for a Zero Suicide pilot in Australia, and to raise awareness of suicide prevention activities in the community. The outcome of this would be a decline in the number of suicides in Australia, which is measured in publicly available records.
*At the time of writing the project was not yet completed