A new paper from the Queensland Mental Health Commission has stressed the heightened risk of suicide that follows a discharge from hospital.

It's so easy to just see them as numbers on a page: 627, 30, six. But they're not numerals, they're lives.

In Queensland last year, 627 people died by suicide.

For every life ended, about 30 more attempted to do the same.

And that left at least six friends, family and colleagues struggling to deal with each loss.

It is a sequence the Queensland Mental Health Commission hopes will be reversed by shifting the way we think about suicide.

One element identified as needing reform is the way patients who have attempted suicide are supported by hospitals.

A paper released by the commission highlights the heightened risk of suicide that follows someone being discharged from hospital.

It also notes a national review that found there was limited or no follow-up of patients who have attempted suicide.

"Transitions in and out of care are known risk times and evidence suggests that post-discharge follow-up is highly effective in reducing a person's risk of suicide," the paper says.

Emergency department workers in particular felt they did not have the skills or confidence to manage suicidal patients.

The paper also notes a "common misconception" that people take their owns lives because they are suffering a mental health condition.

Mental Health Commissioner Dr Lesley van Schoubroeck says a move away from a "mental illness model" to a more inclusive, co-ordinated system is needed.

"We need (a model) which considers and responds to the broad range of factors that contribute to suicide risk," she said.

Ideally, this would help enforce a "no wrong door" approach, whereby a range of services are able to help those considering taking their own life.

"Clinical help is vital when and where people need it," Dr van Schoubroeck said.

"But there is much more we can do to prevent suicide."

The commission is now seeking feedback for an action plan to be released in September to help curb the state's suicide rate.

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467.