Hospital accident and emergency units will be staffed with psychiatric nurses by the end of this year to provide follow-up care to an estimated 11,000 people who attempt suicide each year.
This is part of a strategy to reduce the number of people taking their own life.
It is one of a number of developments due to be announced today at the first national forum on suicide prevention, organised by an office within the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Geoff Day, head of the recently established National Office for Suicide Prevention, said expert staff would assess patients who deliberately harmed themselves within a short period of their treatment in an A&E unit and offer social, psychological or medical support where appropriate.
A history of deliberate self-harm is the strongest predictor of repeated suicidal behaviour, ac- cording to research. Some hospitals already have psychiatric nur- ses in place, while Mr Day said it was planned that all A&Es would be able to provide a specialist response by the end of this year.
Ultimately he hoped teams of professionals - including doctors, nurses and therapists - would form part of the response.
Health authorities in Cork have been involved in an "assertive outreach" programme, which has offered patients treatments such as counselling and support, instead of the traditional passive response.
Researchers are understood to be encouraged by the response and the findings may provide a model for how A&E units respond to attempted suicides.
The National Suicide Research Foundation, meanwhile, is researching best practice in the area to provide a standard response in hospitals across the State.
Mr Day said: "We need to be proactive and assertive in responding to the need of people who are at high risk of suicide. In the past we didn't know the extent of the problem. Now we have enough data which gives us a clear indication of what we need to act on."
Today's forum will include contributions from President Mary McAleese, who established a special forum on suicide last year, and Minister of State for mental health, Tim O'Malley.
Details of the National Office for Suicide Prevention's development plan for this year, due to be discussed today, include an awareness campaign which seeks to lift the stigma surrounding mental illness and encourage people to seek help.
The €1 million campaign will draw on the success of the Scottish health authorities' "See Me" campaign, which had a positive impact on public views of mental health.
A review of bereavement services is also about to be commissioned by the office shortly. In the meantime, funding has been provided to support group Console to develop a national helpline.
Research on improving the collection of data relating to undetermined deaths has been commissioned, while officials are considering whether to change the forms used by gardaí on recording undetermined deaths.
Overall, the office is drawing on the recommendations of a 10-year Government strategy on tackling suicide, Reach Out.
It sets out 20 key objectives which target the general population and more at-risk groups.
With the general population, it promotes positive mental health awareness programmes, education and support services.
At-risk groups include young men, prisoners and people who harm themselves.
