What nurses can do to understand and prevent youth suicide

Imagine your busy household, on a Tuesday evening. Your children are watching TV, you are tidying away the dishes after the evening meal. Your mind drifts to the pile of laundry waiting from the weekend sports, the homework that needs be supervised. You wonder carelessly if your 13-year-old will walk the dog this evening. He has been quiet these past few days. The phone rings. It is your mother, you chat for a while. Suddenly you hear your 8-year-old daughter scream. You drop the phone, you race to your son’s bedroom and he is hanging from the top bunk bed, limp and blue, with froth in his mouth. You cut him down and dial for an ambulance.