#suicide hotline

The state of Hawai‘i recognizes September as “Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month,” with Sept. 10 observed globally every year as World Suicide Prevention Day.  

A surge of calls to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline one year after the Lahaina wildfires underscores urgent need for expanded Hawaiʻi-based mental health support services. However, limited local resources have caused many calls to be rerouted to out-of-state services, exposing critical gaps in local mental health infrastructure, according to the University of Hawaiʻi. These findings were published in JAMA Network Open on Nov. 20.

The Child Suicide Prevention and Lethal Means Safety Act would fund suicide prevention initiatives, ensure health care providers receive training to prevent intentional harm and create a centralized hub to provide safety information to at-risk youth and their support networks.

The annual Youth Services sign-waving was held during Suicide Prevention Week this week. But with the recent wildfires, the Youth Services team decided to remove the word “suicide” from signs and focus on available help, specifically the 988 Suicide and Crisis Hotline, mental health and “Lahaina Strong.”

Maui Economic Opportunity Youth Services continued a decade-long tradition of sign waving to bring community awareness to suicide on Tuesday, Sept. 13, along Kaʻahumanu Avenue in Kahului.

Hawai‘i is among 36 states that uses the “988” prefix and must transition to 10-digit dialing for local calls.