On Monday, a 17-year-old student jumped to his death from the school building after being accused of stealing money, causing distress to his family, friends and teachers.

The Mental Health Department yesterday dispatched a team of psychologists to the school to help those who were traumatised by the incident.

Dr Yongyuth Wongpiromsarn, senior expert head of the department’s adviser group, said this was a sad event that no one wanted to happen, but now it was the duty of the department to heal the mental problems of those who were mentally pained.

“The department has sent psychologists to talk to all affected people – at the school and the boy’s family – as we understand that both sides are suffering from guilt, anger, grief, and disappointment because of this tragedy,” Yongyuth said.

It was earlier reported that the deceased student felt guilty after he was reportedly caught stealing his friend’s money and was scolded by his teacher, which made him commit suicide. The boy’s family and the public were angry at the teacher’s reaction and this had caused negative emotional impact to all sides.

Yongyuth emphasised that no one should be blamed, as no one knew what was really happening and the real reason for the student committing suicide.

To prevent similar incidents in the future, we must prioritise in giving assistance to those in need under the student assistance system.

“The Education Ministry already has a system to oversee students who need help, find students with problems, so as to prevent them from harming themselves. We must strengthen this system to prevent suicides among teenage students, which is increasing globally,” Yongyuth said.

“Teenagers have a fragile mental state and often make decisions very suddenly, which leads them to commit suicide. So, if the school has a proper prevention system, we can reduce this problem.”