Ripple Suicide Prevention

The Elevate Prize Funding will enable Ripple to carry out the following activities:

•Technology build and maintenance (including 24/7 keyword configuration)

•Social Media advertising via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

•Printing of Flyers/Handouts to promote Ripple Suicide Prevention

•Web Hosting (AWS/Microsoft Azure)

•IT Support facility for the Ripple Suicide Prevention tool

•Front end development (visual appearance of tool)

•Data encryption service for Ripple Suicide Prevention

•Cookie tool and policy for Ripple Suicide Prevention

•Staffing – Employment of an Administration Assistant 

I lost my only sibling, my little brother Josh, on 25th November 2020 to suicide. He was just 21 years old.

After examining Josh’s phone and laptop, I found that Josh had been researching techniques to take his own life via harmful internet searches. The content available online following a harmful online search of this nature currently provides mental health support in one format; a helpline.

To ensure more help and support is given to individuals in mental health crisis and searching for harmful content online, I set up R;pple Suicide Prevention three weeks after losing my brother. 

R;pple addresses the lack of online intervention and instead provides an immediate, vibrant display on a user’s device once they have been flagged as searching for online content relating to self-harm or suicide. The technology can be deployed as an ‘add on’ extension product or as a ‘pop up’ nudge technique.

R;pple consists of a message of hope as well as providing a selection of mental health support resources in a range of different communicative options (call, text, webchat, self-help app, pocket resources) from our charity partners.

The Problem - When an online search is conducted relating to self-harm or suicide, a lack of mental health support and resources are presented to the user, excluding groups from getting the mental health support they urgently need in a format that suits them.

The Solution - To ensure immediate mental health support is presented to individuals following a harmful online search via innovative technology and consisting of a choice of help and resources to prevent self-harm and suicide. 

Step 1 - Installation - The R;pple tool is installed on a users device either a) pro-actively as an ‘Add-on’ or b) forcefully as an integrated ‘nudge technique’ depending on the IT infrastructure.

Step 2 - Harmful Search - User searches for harmful online content relating to self-harm or suicide using a search engine.

Step 3 - R;pple Display - The R;pple tool is presented to the user, including a message of hope, a visual display and a selection of mental health resources available immediately.

Step 4 - Seek Help - The R;pple tool resonates with the user and they choose to gain mental health support by clicking on one of the help button options.

“There are 1.2 million internet searches for ways to take your own life every month” - Suicide Forum. 

The reasons why people choose suicide are often complex, although the actual act of suicide is less so – it involves someone taking practical action to end their own life. If suicide is a practical act then we need practical solutions to prevent it from happening, R;pple is a vital and practical tool which achieves that aim. 

In a moment of crisis, anything that offers hope or an alternative to someone considering suicide has to be considered very seriously. By interrupting someone’s search for a method to take their own life and instead, providing them with messages of hope and practical actions they can undertake to access help and support, R;pple goes significantly beyond simply flagging up a helpline, together with the requested search results.

R;pple is a game changer in suicide prevention tools. There is nothing else like this out there, anywhere, in any country on any browser or device. 

I have pointed out a huge gap in the way we provide mitigation services and I possess the technical skills to develop a vital resource to bridge this gap.

R;pple has already gained traction from Japan, USA, Australia and New Zealand as well as significant backing from the UK.

The impact this technology can and will have on humanity is significant. 

• Reduction in harmful online views – the increase of mental health support available following a harmful online search will result in more users gaining the support that they need to improve their mental health. 
• Reduction in suicide rates – the increase of mental health support available following an online search will result in more users gaining the support they need instead of choosing to take their own life. 
• Mental health charity existence – by displaying a range of mental health resources, more users will gain the mental health support they need in a way that suits them (e.g. helpline, text, webchat, apps) 

The concept of R;pple is the same nationally as it is globally - to reach as many people as possible to ensure they are provided with immediate mental health support in a format that suits them. Key audiences include students, young people, parents, those with mental health struggles now and in the future, employees, the transport network, mental health charities, search engines, browsers, Internet Service providers.