Around 650 advisory firms have accessed a guide aimed at helping them in talking about suicide-related issues with their clients since its 2021 launch.
In the autumn of 2021 Health & Protection reported on the launch of the ‘Talking about suicide: an adviser’s guide’ developed by Action for Suicide Prevention in Insurance (ASPiiN) – a voluntary group of individuals from across the protection insurance industry who have a professional or personal experience of the impact of suicide.
It was published in partnership with the Protection Distributors Group (PDG) and Sesame Bankhall Group (SBG), with expert guidance and support from the Samaritans.
The guide covers a range of topics including why a customer may want to talk about suicide when discussing insurance, signposting to sources of information and support, access to insurance for customers and the language advisers should use.
Providing an update on update of the guide to coincide with World Mental Health Day today (10 October) SBG told Health & Protection that since launch some 650 advisory firms have accessed the guide to find out more, and more than 100 firms downloaded a copy to use within their business, and to share wider with their colleagues.
Emma Thomson, head of protection development at Sesame Bankhall Group, said: “We appreciate there may be times when financial advisers find themselves in a situation where they have concerns over a customer’s health and welfare. But while they are experts in what they do, they are not trained counsellors.
“Working in collaboration with a range of partners, including ASPiiN, Care first and PDG, SBG has developed a range of support services and products to help equip advisers with the right information, so they can signpost customers to the right sources of expert assistance.
“Our aim is to help financial advisers, along with the wider financial services community, to increase their understanding of the issues relating to mental health and wellbeing, helping them to become more confident in identifying and supporting customers, or potential customers, who may be vulnerable and require mental health and wellbeing support.”
Alan Knowles, managing director of Cura Financial Services, and member of the Protection Distributors Group, who has first hand experience of taking such harrowing calls, added: “The excellent guide produced by ASPiiN, which was supported by SBG and the PDG, is still as useful today as it was when it was released in 2021.
“At Cura we have built elements into our staff training, especially in areas such as use of language and vulnerable customer training.
“We have a number of staff who are mental health first-aiders and incorporated an ‘SOS line’ into our office messaging software, which staff can use to get additional support if they are concerned about a customer on the phone or are having a particularly difficult call.
“We also reviewed every page on our website to ensure we were using the appropriate language. I would encourage all firms to read the guide and incorporate training on this important area.”