The International Crisis Suicide Prevention Research Collaboration (ICSPRC) is a global, independent network providing leadership and facilitating international collaboration in suicide research.
The objectives of the ICSPRC are:
- to support suicide prevention policy and practice during public health emergencies and other global emergencies catastrophic events via timely research and via its links with international organisations, such as IASP, IASR, WHO, UN, etc.
- to provide a platform for suicide prevention researchers to share timely data and information confidentially, prior to publication.
- to facilitate sharing and dissemination of timely research outcomes and outputs via regular webinars and make contributions to global and regional conferences and seminars.
In order to maximise the societal impact of research the ICSPRC works in partnership and collaboration with the International Association of Suicide Prevention (IASP).
History
In response to widespread concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide and suicidal behaviour an international group of suicide prevention researchers from around 40 countries formed the International COVID-19 suicide prevention research collaboration (ICSPRC) https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(20)30171-1/fulltext. Their aim was to enhance good quality collaborative research on the prevention and management of suicide and suicidal behaviours in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 Pandemic had ended in May 2023, the collaboration has continued to focus on the longterm effects of COVID-19 on suicide as well as expanding their remit to include the impact of crises on suicide and suicidal behaviour.
Initiatives have included:
- An editorial in Crisis summarising research considerations in relation to COVID-19
- A series of webinars on related research
- Advice on questions / survey tools relevant to suicide prevention research in relation to COVID-19
- A letter to academic journal editors with guidance on responsible publishing of research on Covid-19 and suicide, published in the British Medical Journal on 8 February 2021 https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n351.
Please also see and share this short video summarising this guidance:
Countries represented in the collaboration:
Australia; Austria; Bangladesh; Belgium; Brazil; Canada; China; Czech Republic, Denmark; Ecuador; England; Finland; France; Ghana; Germany; Hong Kong; India; Iran; Ireland; Israel; Japan; Kenya; Malaysia; Mexico; Netherlands; New Zealand; Nigeria; Northern Ireland; Norway; Pakistan; Peru; Poland; Russia; Scotland; Slovenia; South Africa; Spain; Sri Lanka; Sweden; Taiwan; Wales; Uganda; USA
Steering Group
| Title | First Name | Surname | Address |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mgs | Pablo | Analuisa | Ministerio de Salud Pública, Ecuador |
| Prof | Louis | Appleby | Centre for Suicide Prevention, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK |
| Prof | Ella | Arensman | School of Public Health and National Suicide Research Foundation, College of Medicine and Health, University College Cork, Cork, Republic of Ireland |
| Prof | Jason | Bantjes | Department of Psychology, Stellenbosch University, South Africa |
| Prof | David | Gunnell | Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Canynge Hall, 39 Whatley Road, Bristol, BS8 2PS, UK |
| Prof | Keith | Hawton | Department of Psychiatry, Warneford Hospital, Centre for Suicide Research, University of Oxford, Oxford UK |
| Prof | Ann | John | Population Psychiatry, Suicide and Informatics, Medical School, Swansea University, Swansea, UK |
| Prof | Nav | Kapur | Division of Psychology & Mental Health, Centre for Mental Health and Safety, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK |
| Prof | Murad | Khan | Aga Khan University, Stadium Road, Karachi, Pakistan |
| Dr | Olivia | Kirtley | Center for Contextual Psychiatry, KU Leuven, Department of Neuroscience, Campus Sint-Rafael, Kapucijnenvoer 33, Bus 7001 (Blok H), 3000, Leuven, Belgium. |
| Dr | Duleeka | Knipe | Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Canynge Hall, 39 Whatley Road, Bristol, BS8 2PS, UK |
| Prof | Thomas | Niederkrotenthaler | Unit Suicide Research and Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Centre for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Kinderspitalgasse 15, A-1090 Vienna, Austria |
| Emma | Nielsen | Self-Harm Research Group, School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD UK | |
| Prof | Rory | O'Connor | Suicidal Behaviour Research Laboratory, Institute of Health & Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, 1055 Great Western Road, Glasgow, G12 0XH |
| Prof | Michael | Phillips | Suicide Research and Prevention Center, Shanghai Mental Health |
| Prof | Jane | Pirkis | Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Prof | Steve | Platt | Usher Institute, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh |
| Dr | Mark | Sinyor | Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Prof | Ellen | Townsend | Self-Harm Research Group, School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD UK |
| Dr | Lakshmi | Vijayakumar | Department of Psychiatry, Voluntary Health Service, SNEHA, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Prof | Gil | Zalsman | Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel |
| Prof | Rakhi | Dandona | Public Health Foundation of India, New Delhi, India |
