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The suicide rate in the United States remains comparatively high for the 15 to 24 age group with 5,079 suicides in this age range in 2014, making it the second leading cause of death for that age range. By comparison, suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death for all those aged 10 and over, with 33,289 suicides for all US citizens in 2006.
Suicide prevention is a collection of efforts to reduce the risk of suicide. These efforts may occur at the individual, relationship, community, and society level. Suicide is often preventable.
Alcohol education is the practice of disseminating information about the effects of alcohol on health, as well as society and the family unit. It was introduced into the public schools by temperance organizations such as the Woman's Christian Temperance Union in the late 19th century. Initially, alcohol education focused on how the consumption of alcoholic beverages affected society, as well as the family unit. In the 1930s, this came to also incorporate education pertaining to alcohol's effects on health. For example, even light and moderate alcohol consumption increases cancer risk in individuals. Organizations such as the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in the United States were founded to promulgate alcohol education alongside those of the temperance movement, such as the American Council on Alcohol Problems.
ReachOut.com is an internet service for young people that provides information, support and resources about mental health issues and enable them to develop resilience, increase coping skills, and facilitate help-seeking behaviour. The site contains information about issues affecting young people in the form of fact sheets, stories, podcasts and online forums.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a United States-based suicide prevention network of 161 crisis centers that provides a 24/7, toll-free hotline available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. After dialling 1-800-273-TALK (8255), the caller is routed to their nearest crisis center to receive immediate counseling and local mental health referrals. The Lifeline supports people who call for themselves or someone they care about.
Youth suicide is when a young person, generally categorized as someone below age 21, deliberately ends their own life. Rates of attempted and completed youth suicide in Western societies and other countries are high. Youth suicide attempts are more common among girls, but adolescent males are the ones who usually carry out suicide. Suicide rates in youths have nearly tripled between the 1960s and 1980s. For example, in Australia suicide is second only to motor vehicle accidents as its leading cause of death for people aged 15–25, and according to the National Institute for Mental Health, suicide is the third leading cause of death among teens in the United States.
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse—including alcoholism and the use of benzodiazepines—are risk factors. Some suicides are impulsive acts due to stress, such as from financial difficulties, relationship problems such as breakups, or bullying. Those who have previously attempted suicide are at a higher risk for future attempts. Effective suicide prevention efforts include limiting access to methods of suicide—such as firearms, drugs, and poisons; treating mental disorders and substance misuse; careful media reporting about suicide; and improving economic conditions. Even though crisis hotlines are common, they have not been well studied.
The Black Dog Institute is a not-for-profit facility for diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mood disorders such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. It was founded in 2002 by the UNSW School of Psychiatry Scientia Professor Gordon Parker and is based in Sydney, Australia.
World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) is an awareness day observed on 10 September every year, in order to provide worldwide commitment and action to prevent suicides, with various activities around the world since 2003. The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) collaborates with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) to host World Suicide Prevention Day. In 2011 an estimated 40 countries held awareness events to mark the occasion. According to WHO's Mental health Atlas released in 2014, no low-income country reported having a national suicide prevention strategy, while less than 10% of lower-middle income countries, and almost a third of upper-middle and high-income countries had.
Suicide is a major national public health issue in the United States. In 2017, there were 47,173 recorded suicides, up from 42,773 in 2014, according to the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). On average, adjusted for age, the annual U.S. suicide rate increased 24% between 1999 and 2014, from 10.5 to 13.0 suicides per 100,000 people, the highest rate recorded in 28 years. Due to the stigma surrounding suicide, it is suspected that suicide generally is underreported. In April 2016, the CDC released data showing that the suicide rate in the United States had hit a 30-year high, and later in June 2018, released further data showing that the rate has continued to increase and has increased in every U.S. state except Nevada since 1999. Surging death rates from suicide, drug overdoses and alcoholism, what researchers refer to as "deaths of despair", are largely responsible for a consecutive three year decline of life expectancy in the U.S. This constitutes the first three-year drop in life expectancy in the U.S. since the years 1915–1918.
In 2016 the number of suicides in India had increased to 230,314. Suicide was the most common cause of death in both the age groups of 15–29 years and 15–39 years.
In 2016, the suicide rate in Australia was 5.7 deaths per 100,000 people, down from 6.6 per 100,000 people in 2007. 2,866 people died from suicide in Australia in 2016. The World Health Organization reported the rate of suicide in Australia at 10.4 per 100,000 people per year. The Australian Department of Health reported that the age standardised rate of suicide decreased from 14.7 per 100,000 people in 1997, to 10.3 in 2005.
The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention is an American suicide prevention organization coordinating national efforts to advance the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention (NSSP). It is a public/private partnership that, according to them, "catalyzes planning, implementation, and accountability for updating and advancing the NSSP. The Action Alliance works on the 2001 National Strategy for Suicide Prevention and is an outgrowth of the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. The Action Alliance initially focused on three high-risk populations; LGBT Youth, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Military/Veterans. Part of the group's campaign will be to educate on the warning signs of suicide, promoting the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, as well as community crisis clinics across the U.S.
The FRIENDS Programs are a series of Resilience programs developed by Professor Paula Barrett. The programs aim to increase social and emotional skills, promote resilience, and preventing anxiety and depression across the lifespan. As a prevention protocol, FRIENDS has been noted as “one of the most robustly-supported programmes for internalising disorders,” with “a number of large-scale type 1 randomised control trials worldwide” demonstrating its effectiveness ( ). The FRIENDS programs are acknowledged by the World Health Organization as effective evidence based prevention programs.
Bhutanese Americans are Americans of Bhutanese descent. According to the 2010 census there are 19,439 Americans of Bhutanese descent. However, many Bhutanese came to the U.S. from Nepal as political refugees from that country and they surpass, according to some estimates, 70,000 people.
R U OK? is an Australian non-profit suicide prevention organisation, founded by advertiser Gavin Larkin in 2009. It revolves around the slogan "R U OK?", and advocates for people to have conversations with others. The organisation has a dedicated R U OK? Day, held annually on the second Thursday of September, which encourages Australians to connect with people who have emotional insecurity, to address social isolation and promote community cohesiveness.
United States military veteran suicide is an ongoing phenomenon regarding a reportedly high rate of suicide among U.S. military veterans, in comparison to the general public. According to the most recent report published by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in 2016, which analyzed 55 million veterans' records from 1979 to 2014, the current analysis indicates that an average of 20 veterans die from suicide per day.
Prevention of mental disorders are measures that try to decrease the chances of a mental disorder occurring. A 2004 WHO report stated that "prevention of these disorders is obviously one of the most effective ways to reduce the [disease] burden." The 2011 European Psychiatric Association (EPA) guidance on prevention of mental disorders states "There is considerable evidence that various psychiatric conditions can be prevented through the implementation of effective evidence-based interventions." A 2011 UK Department of Health report on the economic case for mental health promotion and mental illness prevention found that "many interventions are outstandingly good value for money, low in cost and often become self-financing over time, saving public expenditure". In 2016, the National Institute of Mental Health re-affirmed prevention as a research priority area.
Mental health in Australia has been through a massive shift in the last 50 years, with 20% of Australians experiencing one or more mental health episodes in their lifetimes. Australia runs on a mixed health care system, with both public and private health care streams. The public system includes a government run insurance scheme called Medicare, which itself aids towards mental health schemes. Each state within Australia have their own management plans for mental health treatment, however, the overarching system and spending remains the same.
References
- ↑ "Mental health & well being – National Suicide Prevention Strategy". Mentalhealth.gov.au. 2011-08-17. Archived from the original on 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
- ↑ "Mental health & well being – National Mental Health Strategy". Mentalhealth.gov.au. 2010-10-08. Archived from the original on 2011-12-23. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
- 1 2 "LIFE: suicide prevention in Australia – LIFE Resources". Livingisforeveryone.com.au. Archived from the original on 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
- ↑ "livingisforeveryone.com.au". livingisforeveryone.com.au. 2012-01-01. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
- ↑ "Department of Health and Ageing – Minister declares "Living is for Everyone"". Health.gov.au. 2000-10-06. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
- ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-09-13. Retrieved 2010-05-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-10-08. Retrieved 2010-05-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ↑ "LIFE: suicide prevention in Australia – LIFE Resources – LIFE Fact Sheets". Livingisforeveryone.com.au. Archived from the original on 2011-12-25. Retrieved 2012-01-15.