World Suicide Prevention Day

World Suicide Prevention Day

September 11, 2007

    GENEVA, Sept. 11 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- The focus of
World Suicide Prevention Day this year is on suicide
prevention from youth to old age.  This theme has been
adopted to emphasize that people of all ages commit suicide
and that actions to prevent suicide included in national
responses should meet the needs of different age groups.

    (Logo:
http://www.xprn.com.cn/xprn/sa/20061102095006-51-min.jpg )

    World Suicide Prevention Day is an opportunity for
people worldwide to unite in commitment and action to
ensure that suicides are prevented, that people living with
mental illness receive adequate treatment, that
community-based care and close follow-up are available to
people who attempt suicide, that access to common methods
of suicides is restricted, and that media reports of
suicides are more measured. 

    Today, too many people of all ages needlessly take
their own lives. On average, almost 3000 people commit
suicide every day. Every 30 seconds, the loss of a person
who killed themselves shatters the lives of family and
friends.  For every person who completes a suicide, 20 or
more may attempt suicide.  For family and friends affected
by suicide or attempted suicide, the emotional impact may
last for many years.

    There is a growing awareness of suicide as a major
public health problem, even though there is a taboo in many
societies against discussing it openly. Worldwide, suicide
rates have increased by 60% over the last 50 years, and the
increase has been particularly marked in developing
countries.  Although reported suicide is now among the
three leading global causes of death among young people
aged 15-34 years, the majority of suicides are reported in
adults and older adults (60 years and older).

    The World Health Organization (WHO) supports suicide
prevention initiatives around the world which address
suicide in people of all ages.  WHO works with governments
and other partners such as the International Association
for Suicide Prevention to ensure that suicide is no longer
seen as a taboo or an acceptable result of personal or
social crises, but as a health condition influenced by
psycho-social, cultural and environmental risk factors
which can be prevented through national responses which
address the main local risk factors for suicide. 

    WHO's role is to build political commitment and
leadership to develop national responses to prevent
suicide, strengthen national planning capacity to build the
core building blocks of such a national response, and build
the national capacities to implement these responses.

    If governments commit to defining national responses to
prevent suicide among all ages, huge progress can be made. 
If we build networks and alliances to promote common
approaches which support governments in planning and
implementing their national responses, we will find that
suicide is a huge but largely preventable public health
problem.


    For more information, please contact:
 
     World Health Organization
     Communications Team
     Tel:   [phone] 
     Email: [e-mail] 
     Web:   http://www.who.int 
 
    All press releases, fact sheets and other WHO media
material may be found at: http://www.who.int .