Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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473. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if all front-line staff, including but not exclusive, to An Garda Síochána, prison staff, staff working within the Courts Services, receive suicide prevention training; if suicide prevention training is mandatory for front-line staff under the aegis of his Department; and if not, his plans to make such training mandatory with the provision of a refresher online course available to staff to be completed every three years thereafter. [45654/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I can confirm that front-line staff within the Department of Justice and Equality attended a customer service course this year which provided guidance on how to support those who are distressed. The Department also plans to roll out SafeTALK training next year to increase suicide alertness and enable staff to provide practical help to persons with thoughts of suicide. SafeTALK or ‘Suicide Alertness For Everyone’ is a half day course which prepares participants to identify persons with thoughts of suicide and connect them with appropriate intervention resources.  While this training is not mandatory, all staff will be encouraged to attend.

In relation to the Probation Service the Deputy will appreciate that Probation Officers are for the most part professionally trained social workers and such training includes working with people with mental health difficulties and responding to suicidal ideation.  A number of Probation Service staff have also completed ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Training Skills) training.  A further development in this area is the intention of the Probation Service to deliver training to all staff in the STORM programme, which focuses on developing the skills needed to assess and manage a person at risk of suicide. A number of internal staff will be trained on the delivery of the programme and will then deliver this training to their colleagues.  The process is anticipated to commence in early 2018.

The Courts Service is independent in its functions and the Deputy will appreciate that it arranges its own training programme and priorities.  While it does not provide specific training on Suicide Prevention; a policy is being developed in this regard as part of a review of a range of health and well-being issues.  The Courts Service has also provided SafeTALK training to Court Messengers as part of a wider training course.

The Garda Commissioner is also responsible for the administration and business of An Garda Síochána, including arranging for the training of its members and civilian staff. However, I am informed by the Garda Commissioner that suicide prevention training is provided by the Garda College, to all trainee Gardaí, while completing their two year training programme which leads to an award of a Bachelor of Arts (Level 7) in Applied Police Studies.  During Phase I of their training in the Garda College, trainee Gardaí receive suicide alertness training, in Phase II they attend the two day Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) programme which provides participants with the skills required to discuss suicide with a person at risk and to make an intervention to reduce the immediate risk of suicide.

Given the unique environment of prisons, the Irish Prison Service developed its own bespoke mental health training package in 2015 which has been delivered to approx. 1,100 prison staff across the estate to date. The objective of this training is to provide Irish Prison Service front-line staff with the knowledge and skills to identify and work more effectively with prisoners who have mental health related illnesses. This package includes suicide prevention tools including early referral of prisoners to the appropriate healthcare professionals within the prison system and how to talk to a prisoner who may be suicidal. This mental health training package is much broader than many traditional suicide prevention training packages and includes refresher training every three years.