The Western Australian Government's plan to curb the rate of suicide has been met with a mixed response from health professionals and community leaders.

Key points: Suicide is leading cause of death for Western Australians aged 14 to 44 years old

Suicide is leading cause of death for Western Australians aged 14 to 44 years old Substance abuse and mental health disorders are major contributing factors

Substance abuse and mental health disorders are major contributing factors Indigenous psychologist Tracy Westerman says the strategy is not new or innovative and has serious flaws

Amid concern at the repeated failure of efforts to meaningfully reduce suicide rates, particularly in Aboriginal communities, the McGowan Government has given a glimpse of how it plans to address the issue over the next decade.

Details of the Government's latest approach have been outlined in the consultative draft of the Western Australian Suicide Prevention Action Plan 2021–2025, tabled to parliament last month.

Its release has raised questions among those working on the issue with some identifying serious flaws while others are cautiously optimistic.

The Balgo community has been one of the hardest hit communities by suicide this year. ( ABC Kimberley: Matt Bamford )

Number one killer

According to the draft plan, 383 Western Australians took their lives last year.

Suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged between 14 and 44 years old, with substance abuse and mental health disorders major contributing factors.

The state's far north has some of the highest rates of youth suicide in the world and WA has led the nation in suicides among Aboriginal people for four years.

Residents in the regions often suffer more severe mental health problems and wait longer before seeking treatment.

The framework suggests awareness campaigns for communities that have not yet experienced suicide and targeting individuals who show early signs of suicidal behaviour.

There will be efforts to build support structures around groups affected by a suicide-related death.

There is also an emphasis on better data collection, the need to empower the voices of vulnerable populations like migrants and LGBTQI+ people, and better cooperation between regional and metropolitan service providers.

First Nations people have been singled out with a separate plan to develop an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prevention strategy with dedicated regional streams.

Minister for Mental Health Roger Cook said the action plan aimed to "rebalance the system" regarding suicide prevention.

"[The draft plan] aims to promote an integrated and collaborative whole-of-government response," he said.

"Our approach involves a range of strategies focusing on lowering the risks and increasing protective elements."

Minister for Mental Health Roger Cook will lead the WA Government's suicide prevention strategy. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

Communities at the coal face

This latest strategy has been developed amid the redoubling of efforts to tackle suicide rates in Indigenous communities.

In December, the McGowan Government is expected to release its formal response to Coroner Ros Fogliani's inquest into the deaths of 13 Aboriginal children and young people in the Kimberley.

Meanwhile, communities continue to battle the risk of youth suicide.

One of the places hardest hit this year has been Balgo, in the isolated east Kimberley, where several much-loved young women took their lives earlier this year.

Almost overnight, the 400-resident township on the edge of the Great Sandy Desert more than doubled in size as mourners arrived from across the country to pay their respects.

The Wirrimanu Corporation, which represents Balgo residents, dropped everything to assist.

Chief executive Warren Bretag said the impact of the losses cannot be understated.

"There was a fundamental shift in our future vision. These girls were our future from loving, caring families who invested in education and their growth," he said.

"Our families have been shaken to the core and we are trying to find some sense of it through the fog of grief."

The impact of the losses of several much-loved women in Balgo this year cannot be overstated. ( ABC Kimberley: Andrew Seabourne )

The deaths occurred in quick succession, prompting a large government-led crisis response.

Wirrimanu staff worked around the clock to accommodate the traditional grieving process.

This included the establishment of sorry camps and catering for strict dietary requirements.

As the community's airstrip filled with government-chartered planes, Mr Bretag faced a logistical challenge in facilitating the camps and dealing with well-intentioned FIFO support workers.

He would not criticise government efforts but said the experience highlighted the need for assistance tailored to the community's needs.

"Listening to local needs is essential. Balgo people didn't want to be flooded with unknown non-Indigenous counsellors," he said.

"Government processes are not designed to deal with crisis that require flexible responses.

"We need to build our capacity to find our own voice so we can better speak to Government and Government needs to create forums where Balgo's voice might truly be heard."

WA Coroner Ros Fogliani's findings over the suicides of 13 Aboriginal children and young people are being considered by the Government. ( ABC News )

Mixed reception

WA Rural Doctors Association president Andrew Kirk welcomed the plan but said more details were needed.

"Access will be the key to success and that's certainly an issue at the moment — access to support," he said.

"There needs to be more explicit explanation about how they will address regional differences. Geography is a huge factor in the provision of any health care services in WA."

However, Indigenous psychologist and 2018 West Australian of the Year Professor Tracy Westerman believed the strategy had some serious flaws.

"It's unfortunately a plan that fails to identify or address the significant gaps in Indigenous suicide prevention or provide a clear road map to addressing these critical gaps," she said.

"Without collecting and assessing robust evidence that comes as a result of diligent and independent review of data and programs, we are just throwing good money after bad.

"There is nothing new or innovative in this plan and all the while suicide rates have continued to increase. The time to take a different approach is now."

Professor Westerman called for tighter scrutiny on government-funded prevention programs and an independent assessment to scientifically determine the causes of suicide in Aboriginal people.

The strategy's emphasis on culturally focussed solutions has been welcomed by Wes Morris from the Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Centre (KALACC).

"We spend too much on hospitals and on the clinical side and not enough on the preventative side, so we need to be redressing that balance," he said.

"Those investments need to be provided to the Kimberley region's peak cultural organisation, which is KALACC."