The World Health Organization (WHO) has released its first ever global report on suicide prevention, with the desire to call for collaborative action in reducing suicides throughout the world.
According to WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan, "This report is a call for action to address a large public health problem which has been shrouded in taboo for far too long." With a record of 800,000 people dying each year due to suicide, it is indeed a great problem that needs to be addressed quickly. Breaking this number in a microcosm reflects an estimate of one death by suicide every 40 seconds.
It was discovered that 75% of suicides happen in low and middle income nations. Also, it was revealed that the most common suicide methods employed are hanging, pesticide poisoning, and the use of fire arms. The global numbers also suggest that suicide is more prevalent among individuals 70 years old and above. Meanwhile, looking at the data per county would show that some countries have the highest suicide rates among younger age groups. After all, ranking second place globally as the leading cause of death among 15-29 year-olds is suicide.
This issue is not without hope, as affirmed by Dr. Alexandra Fleischmann, a scientist working for the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse at the World Health Organization. "Effective measures can be taken, even starting at local level and on a small scale," she said.
In its report, the WHO mentioned that preventing suicide means reducing access to paraphernalia or tools that can be used as means to kill oneself. Also, preventing suicide entails more responsible media coverage on suicide, which means avoiding sensationalizing and shunning the use of explicit descriptions of the event.
Most importantly, the WHO strongly looks to a great level of commitment among the world's nations in addressing this global problem.