Abstract:
Suicide is a major cause of death in the present world. It remains a significant social and public health
problem. In this paper, causes of suicide are identified as mental illness, traumatic experience, bullying,
personality disorders, drug addiction/substance abuse, eating disorders, unemployment, social
isolation/loneliness, relationship problems, genetics/family history, philosophical desire/existential
crisis, terminal illness, chronic pain, financial problems and prescription drugs. In preventing suicide,
a combination of evidence-based interventions-universal, selective and indicated should be employed.
The general population is targeted by universal interventions (e.g. restricting access to means of
suicide), selective interventions focus on high-risk subgroups (e.g. people with mental disorders),
whereas those who have attempted suicide are considered high-risk individuals and are therefore
addressed with indicated interventions, which include a range of behavioural therapies and approaches
such as cognitive therapy. A brief intervention and contact approach had been demonstrated to be
effective in reducing suicide mortality among suicide attempters. |
