Health minister Paulette Lenert (LSAP) on Tuesday presented an analysis of the first national suicide prevention action plan, which included 33 action points of which 14 have not yet been implemented, even though the plan officially expired in 2019.
The action plan predates Lenert’s time in office, which she assumed in February 2020 after her predecessor Etienne Schneider (LSAP) stepped down. Lenert during a press conference roughly a year after her appointment acknowledged that much of her mandate so far had been taken up with the coronavirus pandemic.
But mental health is set to play a bigger role, she promised, saying that it would be a key pillar of a national health strategy set to be unveiled during the course of this year.
“There is no hierarchy between mental health and physical health,” Lenert said. Yet the action plan evaluation revealed that many emergency rooms and primary care physicians were ill-equipped to address mental health problems and suicidal thoughts among patients.
Luxembourg in 2018 reported 58 suicides, according to the latest data available by the Santé health administration, although this includes accidental deaths. The number was down from 66 suicides in 2017, 61 in 2016 and 81 the year before, when the suicide prevention plan was first implemented.
The report published on 2 February recommended the government should:
- better coordinate mental health and suicide prevention campaigns via an inter-ministerial committee,
- collect more data for policy-making purposes,
- improve mental health and wellbeing in schools and at work,
- and better train teachers, carers and doctors to address mental health issues.
The health ministry presented the findings shortly after members of parliament had ordered it to publish the report in a motion adopted on 21 January. The same day, lawmakers also adopted a wide-ranging motion urging the government to:
- develop a national mental health plan,
- improve emergency psychiatric care,
- facilitate access to psychological support,
- emphasise mental health in schools,
- combat domestic psychological violence,
- penalise bullying,
- and address the shortage of doctors specialised in psychiatry, among other demands.
Bullying and pandemic suffering
Former labour minister Nicolas Schmit in June 2018 said his office was working on a workplace bullying law, but the document has yet to see the light of day under his successor Dan Kersch. The law would more clearly define bullying, making it easier to report and prosecute.
A 2018 study by the Chamber of Employees said bullying affected more than 16% of the Luxembourg workforce, with half of the respondents affected by bullying also reporting burnout symptoms and poor overall wellbeing.
A follow-up study in 2020 said emotional demands for employees had risen because of the pandemic, with employees generally less satisfied with their workplace.
A mental health plan is already being prepared, but the government last November said progress had been slowed down because of the coronavirus pandemic, even though this has increased the need for mental health support.
Researchers in January said happiness was closely linked to lockdown measures after analysing data from Twitter users and Google searches. In a study published in November 2020, one in three Luxembourg residents said their mental health had deteriorated during the pandemic.