Google unveiled a suicide hotline for Pakistan on Thursday in conjunction with 'Umang Pakistan,' allowing people to receive rapid aid at the top of the search result page when they research anything linked to suicide, Dawn reported. Umang, a mental health helpline recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO), provides support to vulnerable Pakistanis contemplating or planning suicide.
Each year, from 130,000 to 270,000 individuals attempt suicide in Pakistan, according to the WHO. Meanwhile, search interest in mental health concerns has increased. According to Google Trends, themes such as anxiety, sadness, and suicide soared in the country during the 2020-21 era.
“As we see from Trends [Google], Pakistanis are looking for answers about their mental health. We understand time is of the essence when searching for help, especially for those who may be facing suicidal thoughts. We hope that this feature aids vulnerable users in finding help in times of need," Google Regional Director of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, Farhan Qureshi was quoted by Dawn in its report.
“Mental health is the biggest unaddressed problem of our era, especially at a place like Pakistan where more than 40 per cent of the population is suffering from some degree of mental health issues," Umang Pakistan Founder and chief executive officer Kinza Naeem said.
“We are utterly grateful to Google for this timely partnership. I am certain that together we will be able to reach out to the maximum number of people in dire need of mental health support and break the taboo around it nation-wide,” she said.
As per the report, the hotline update will be available both on desktop and mobile.