Citation

Sarma PG. Indian J. Psychol. Med. 2018; 40(3): 201-204.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, Yashoda Hospital, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Indian Psychiatric Society, South Zone, Publisher Medknow Publications)

DOI

10.4103/IJPSYM.IJPSYM_235_17

PMID

29875524

PMCID

PMC5968638

Abstract

BACKGROUND: There is an increasing need for cost computation of every aspect of human behavior for planning.

OBJECTIVE: This objective of the study was to compute the cost of suicide in India in 2015.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Official data on suicides and life expectancy in 2015 formed the basis for computation of years of presumed life lost and total years of life lived (TYLL). Market rate and official estimates of various expenditures - pre- and post-suicide -formed the basis for loss and gain computation. The difference between income and expenditure formed the total cost.

RESULTS: A total of 133,623 persons committed suicide in 2015. They lost 4,349,158 years in total while living for slightly more period of 4,777,293 years. Postsuicide, the expenses were 152,233.8 trillion with a saving of 29,200 trillion. During the lifetime they lived, these people generated an income of 1,672,198 trillion and cost 320739.3 trillion. The net cost of suicide was ' 149,313.9 trillion.

CONCLUSIONS: Although suicide cannot be prevented completely, much monetary loss can be minimized with adequate preventive tailor-made strategies.

Language: en

Keywords

Assets-years of presumed life lost; suicide-cost-short-term; total years of life lived