|
Abstract
|
Emergency departments have seen a 25.5% increase the past 2 years in patients who’ve had suicidal thoughts, harmed themselves, or both, according to a CDC report. It’s the latest article to raise alarm about rising suicide rates, which have increased by 40% in US working-aged adults in less than 2 decades, according to the agency.
The recent analysis used data from the National Syndromic Surveillance Program for patients aged 10 years or older seen between January 2017 through December 2018. Previously, CDC data had shown a 42% increase in emergency department visits for nonfatal self-harm between 2001 and 2016, the authors noted.
“Suicide prevention requires comprehensive and multisectoral approaches to addressing risk at personal, relationship, community, and societal levels,” the authors wrote.
A second CDC report, which used data from 32 states that participated in the 2016 National Violent Death Reporting System, suggests that certain occupations pose an elevated risk of suicide. The overall suicide rate for working adults was 27.4 per 100 000 civilian, noninstitutionalized workers aged 16 to 64 years among males and 7.7 per 100 000 among females. Men working in construction and mineral, oil, and gas extraction were nearly twice as likely to die by suicide than men overall, while their female counterparts were more than 3 times as likely to die by suicide than all other working women. The suicide rate among males in maintenance and repair jobs was 36.9 per 100 000; in the arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media, the rate was 32 per 100 000. Compared with working women overall, the suicide rate for females in protective services jobs was nearly double, and it was almost 40% higher among women working in health care support.
Both reports’ authors recommend the CDC’s comprehensive suicide prevention resources. The investigators who analyzed occupational data emphasized workplace strategies to promote help-seeking, train staff to assist coworkers at risk of suicide, and support programs that boost employee wellness and access to supportive services.
Language: en |