Suicide is a major public health problem. There are almost 1 million suicides per year according to World Health Organization (WHO) statistics. That number roughly corresponds to one death every 40 seconds, making suicide among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15 to 44 years in some countries, and the second leading cause of death in the 10 to 24-years age group. Suicide worldwide was estimated to represent 1.3 percent of the total global burden of disease.
Since 2003 efforts to prevent suicide have been recognized on World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10. This year the theme is "Suicide Prevention: One world connected", reflecting the fact that connections are important at several levels if suicide is to be combated.
Dr. Tracey King, clinical psychologist in the psychology department at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre (SRC), says World Suicide Prevention Day is a day to increase awareness of suicide throughout the world. The day brings together individuals and organizations with an interest in suicide prevention and mobilizes efforts to save live.
According to the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the WHO, connectedness is crucial to individuals who may be vulnerable to suicide; studies have shown that social isolation can increase the risk of suicide and having strong human bonds can be protective against it. Those sources say that reaching out to those who have become disconnected from others and offering them support and friendship may be a life-saving act.
SRC and the Public Hospitals Authority will recognize World Suicide Prevention Day with a workshop under the theme "Suicide Prevention: Save our children" at Grace Communion Hall on Lumumba Lane off Fox Hill Road.
The goals of the workshop are to increase awareness and sensitivity toward suicide in residential and community-based caregivers; assist caregivers in developing appropriate screening techniques and help caregivers to develop an effective institutional action plan.
Addressing the workshop will be Dr. King, who will speak on suicide assessment; Dr. Annalease Richards, a consultant in child psychiatry, who will speak on suicide and mental health; Dr. David Allen, who will present perspectives of suicide in Bahamian society; Carolyn Roberts, the head of psychology at SRC, who will address the overview of suicide in children and adolescents, and Wendy Fernander who will speak on the overall view of what suicide is about.
While the workshop was initially geared toward mental health professionals, Dr. King anticipates participation from the general public. She believes the most important thing is getting the word out about suicide so that members of the public can recognize the signs of a suicidal loved one and get him or her the help he or she needs.
Risk factors for suicide, she said, include unemployment and people who are elderly. Acute warning signs include people talking about killing themselves, saying they would be better off dead and that no one would miss them. She said some people may feel purposeless or trapped.
"A lot of people that think about suicide feel they can't get out of this psychological pain or situation they are in. They can be depressed; sometimes they have a lot of anxiety associated with it, because they're anxious about not being able to get things achieved. There is hopelessness and just worthlessness is the way the person thinking about suicide is feeling," said Dr. King.
According to the WHO, suicide was the second leading cause of death among 15 to 29-year-olds globally in 2012. Suicide is a global phenomenon in all regions of the world; 75 percent of global suicide occurred in low and middle-income countries in 2012. Suicide accounted for 1.4 percent of all deaths worldwide, making it the 15th leading cause of death in 2012.
In The Bahamas, according to WHO statistics as of 2005, The Bahamas' suicide rate per 100,000 stood at 1.9 for men and 0.6 for women. Those numbers also indicate that mental illness, primarily depression and alcohol use disorders, abuse, violence, loss, cultural and social backgrounds represented major risk factors for suicide.
According to Royal Bahamas Police Force statistics, 10 suicides were recorded in 2000. The count dipped to single digits between 2001 and 2007, before increasing again in 2008 with 10 suicides recorded. Twelve suicides were recorded in 2009.
The statistics showed adults between the ages of 36 and 45 committed suicide most frequently during the nine-year period, with 18 recorded. In the 46 to 65 age group, 13 suicides were recorded; 12 suicides were recorded in the 16 to 25 age group and the 26 and 35 age group, respectively.
Also during that nine-year period, there were two suicides in the zero to 15 age group and one suicide in the 66-and-over age group.
Of the total suicides during those nine years, three were of an undetermined age. Fifty-five males committed suicide over the period, with six females taking their own lives.
According to research and statistics, firearms are the most commonly used method of suicide for men and women, accounting for 60 percent of all suicides. The second most common method for men is hanging; for women, the second most common method is self-poisoning, including drug overdose.
At tomorrow's workshop, the focus will be mainly on suicide in children. Dr. King says there is a high rate of suicide among young children, as young as age eight. She could not offer statistics.
"There are a variety of reasons why a child would consider suicide -- bullying; family dynamics, feeling that they're not wanted and not needed; there could be some mental health issues associated with clinical depression -- there are a variety of reasons. There is also abuse that could be associated with the thoughts of suicide in a child," she said.
The doctor believes that workshops, such as the one to be held on World Suicide Prevention Day, are important because they increase awareness and sensitivity to suicide locally. The workshop, she said, will help people to develop effective institutional suicidal screening tools and action plans. It is Dr. King's belief that one suicide affects the entire society in social or emotional ways; as such, World Suicide Prevention Day increases awareness of suicide throughout the world.
According to the ISAP and the WHO, World Suicide Prevention Day has proved to be successful in encouraging organizations to coordinate their efforts and learn from each other. It has also assisted those who have been bereaved by suicide in making themselves heard in discussions about suicide prevention, and sharpened the focus on activities that are effective in preventing suicide.
World Suicide Prevention Day 2014 marks the release by the WHO of the World Suicide Report, which follows the adoption of the Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020 by the World Health Assembly. It is that plan which commits all 194 member states to reducing their suicide rates by 10 percent by 2020.
After Wednesday's workshop, Dr. King said she would like people to leave with a better awareness and understanding of what suicide is and what it is about. She also hopes that the workshop will enable attendees to better recognize the signs of a person contemplating suicide and understand ways they might be able to help that individual.
"A lot of people don't really realize the severity of it, because it's not talked about and there is a stigma associated with suicide and mental health in general in this country. And we don't talk about it enough to get information out there to help prevent it," said Dr. King.
She said the first thing people can do to help someone who is suicidal is to not judge the person considering suicide.
"Listen to them in a compassionate way and stay close to them, if they think the risk is very high for that person to commit suicide and to definitely seek professional help," said Dr. King. She recommends taking the person to the emergency room at the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH), where there is help 24 hours a day, seven days a week. She said a person who is suicidal at 2 a.m., would have to go through the emergency room at the hospital to be admitted to Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre.
A symbolic activity on World Suicide Prevention Day will be IASP's Cycle Around the Globe, an event in which the organization is encouraging all countries to join together to shine a spotlight on the major public health problem and ensure that it receives the policy attention that it warrants.

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