Northern Ireland’s interim Mental Health Champion has urged people to reach out to those who might be struggling as she warned of the impact of the pandemic.
Professor Siobhan O’Neill made the call as she joined Health Minister Robin Swann and chief medical officer Dr Michael McBride at their weekly Stormont briefing.
Prof O’Neill said that while there was no indication suicide rates had increased during the Covid-19 crisis, there was data that indicated more people in Northern Ireland were having suicidal thoughts.
She predicted that numbers seeking mental health services were set to increase.
“There’s some research data coming through that’s telling us that more people feel suicidal, that many people feel that life is not worth living and people are losing hope, and that’s very, very worrying to hear that,” she said.