Suicide prevention should be crucial public health priority, US surgeon general says

The president of the National Mental Health Association (NMHA) in the US says the country is living in the “Dark Ages” as it attempts to deal with mental illness, and the result is many preventable deaths due to suicide. Michael Faenza made the comment in May after American Surgeon General David Satcher reported that suicide and suicide prevention should be considered critical public health priorities in the US. That report (www.mentalhealth.org/publications/allpubs/SMA01-3518/index.htm#summary) says 86 Americans commit suicide every day, and 1500 more attempt it. The annual toll of more than 31 000 deaths means that suicide is the eighth leading cause of death in the US, the report said.

To coincide with its release, the NMHA — the largest nonprofit mental health organization in the US — released results of a survey which found that up to 8.4 million Americans (4;) have contemplated suicide.

Faenza said the final toll is tragic because most suicides are a result of treatable mental illness. “Our society is in denial. Just as millions of Americans a decade ago were in denial of cancer risks, Americans today are in denial of the risks of untreated mental illness.”

Canada's suicide rate parallels the US rate, although it tends to be slightly higher here. Calgary's Suicide Information and Education Centre (www.suicideinfo.ca/about/index.htm) says 3681 suicides were reported in Canada in 1997. Canada had a suicide rate of 13 per 100 000 people from 1993–97, compared with 12 per 100 000 in the US.