Reducing Youth Suicide in San Diego

Across the United States, a recognizable need has developed for youth suicide prevention. In recent years, instances of cyber-bullying and related suicides have been on the rise. Adolescent suicide continues to be a major focus for mental health research in trying to understand the factors and relationships that lead to suicidal behavior. Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death for children and youth ages 10-14 and the second leading cause of death for young adults 15-19. More teenagers died from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia and influenza, and chronic lung disease combined. The top three methods used in suicides of young people Include firearm (46%), suffocation (39%), and poisoning (8%). Research indicates that 16.9% of adolescents seriously contemplate attempting suicide, 16.5% develop a suicide plan, 8.5% attempt suicide, and 2.9% require emergency medical treatment following a serious suicide attempt. Nearly 2% of all deaths in the United States are from suicide. Youth suicides in particular have reached epidemic proportions. Annually, over 500,000 young adults age 15-25, attempt suicide and more than 32,000 suicides occurred in the United States last year alone translating to 89 suicides per day or one suicide every 16 minutes. Death by suicide is considered one of the more preventable causes of violent deaths. Up to 80% of the people who attempt or successfully commit suicide show some form of warning signs or cries for help prior to the actual event. There are numerous signs that have been associated with suicidal behavior among adolescent youth, such as alcohol use, cigarette smoking, illicit drug use, delinquent behavior, and precocious sexual intercourse. Such behaviors are not only self-destructive, they are generally apparent to others. Suicide now ranks first among causes of non-natural death in San Diego County, exceeding deaths by motor vehicle crashes, homicide, drug overdoses, and other non-natural causes. The rate of suicide in large metropolitan cities in the United States is 13.2 deaths per 100,000 people whereas there are 18.0 deaths per 100,000 people in non-metropolitan cities, thus suggesting that there is less chance of adolescents to commit suicide in metropolitan areas. In the San Diego County, California area, over 136 children between the ages of 10 and 19 committed suicide between 1998 and 2007. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the age-adjusted suicide rate has been consistently higher in San Diego County than in the state of California or the United States overall.