Embrace, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization (NGO) that raises awareness about mental health, launched in September the first national suicide prevention hotline in Lebanon. Currently in its pilot phase, the hotline will officially launch at the end of October and will be able to receive up to 150 calls a month.
Suicide rates in Lebanon are lower than in other countries. According to a World Health Organization study last updated in June, the suicide rate in Lebanon for 2015 stood at 3.1 per 100,000 people compared with 14.3 per 100,000 people in the United States for the same year. But lower suicide rates do not mean the issue should be taken lightly, and mental health issues such as depression should be prevented and treated before they become an epidemic.