Name of 988 does not serve its purpose

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline - 988 - dubbed as Suicide and Crisis Lifeline - is being promoted as a response to the mental health crisis that, according to some, has led to recent spate of shootings in public spaces. Setting aside the validity of this conclusion, the naming of 988 will discourage many who may need it. None of the recent shooters had reached the state of being suicidal, even if they had a mental health problem. By conflating mental health with suicidal tendencies, we will discourage people with normal mental health problems from calling 988. That will be a disservice to them, and will not serve the purpose of setting up 988. 

Published in The Fairfax County Times on July 24, 2023

Iqbal Unus is a long time resident of Herndon, VA