NCJ Number
181888
Editor(s)
Fay L. Delk
Date Published
December 1999
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This newsletter article reviews the statistics on suicide in the United States, with attention to its prevalence in Tennessee, and outlines Tennessee's proposed plan to prevent suicide statewide.
Abstract
In 1997, Tennessee ranked 16th in the rate of suicide, at a rate of 13.6 per 100,000, compared to 11.4 nationally. Nationally, suicide rates have increased in the 10-19 age group and among young African-American males since the 1940's, according to the Centers for Disease Control. It has been suggested that as the African-American middle class grows, more African-Americans experience middle-class stresses and adopt middle-class responses. Although a previous suicide attempt is considered a major risk factor for suicide, no national data are compiled. Tennessee plans to start an anonymous reporting system; however, an estimated 5 million Americans have unsuccessfully attempted to kill themselves, and there are an estimated 765,000 attempts annually. In 1998 a collaboration of national public and private groups held a conference to analyze the problem. The results of this conference have been compiled in "The Surgeon General's Call to Action." The National Strategy for Suicide Prevention is organized around (AIM): awareness, intervention, and methodology. Tennessee's proposed plan to fight suicide includes creating a statewide toll-free suicide hotline; improving media cooperation; supporting local Survivors of Suicide and Suicide Anonymous meetings; education efforts; increased collaboration with clergy, teachers, health care professionals, and others who regularly encounter people under stress; and encouraging workers to earn certification from the American Association of Suicidology. 1 figure and a list of risk factors for suicide