Paul Roos calls for suicide prevention awareness amid student’s death
· The South African
Paul Roos Gymnasium counsellors have called on parents to be vigilant of their sons’ mental health after the death of student Nico Caine.
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The school, which produced alumni like Springbok Damian Willemse and Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber, shared a lengthy document about dealing with grief, particularly suicide, within their community.
A cause of death for the Grade 9 learner has not been made public.
PAUL ROOS GYMNASIUM MOURNING DEATH OF STUDENT
On Friday, 18 September, Paul Roos Gymnasium shared the following statement on their social media platforms: “It is with immense sadness that we share the news of the passing of one of our Grade 9 day scholars, Nico Caine, on Thursday evening.
“Our deepest condolences go to Nico’s family and friends. We hold them, and all those who loved Nico, in our thoughts and prayers as they come to terms with this devastating loss”.
The school urged the community to respect the family’s privacy. It did not share any additional information about the cause of death.
The school disabled public comments.
DEALING WITH SUICIDE
A day after Nico Caine’s death, Paul Roos Gymnasium counsellors issued a lengthy document to parents, titled Supporting our sons.
In it, the trained professionals offered help to parents in understanding how their children deal with grief, particularly suicide, within the school community.
The documents warned that exposure to suicide could affect youth, urging parents to check in on their sons’ mental health and have honest conversations about their children’s concerns and questions.
It also shared that grief could affect one teen differently from another, appealing to parents to be patient, compassionate and empathetic.
Parents were also educated about recognising the warning signs of suicidal thoughts in their own sons, listing significant red flags like self-harm, talking about ending one’s life, agitation, impulsivity or aggression and sudden changes in mood, sleep, school attendance or everyday functioning.
While the document came shortly after Nico Caine’s death, it is believed to form part of Paul Roose Gymnasium’s broader September Suicide Prevention Month programme.