Recession ‘led to 10,000 suicides’
June 21 BBC
The economic crisis in Europe and North America led to more than
10,000 extra suicides, according to figures from UK researchers. A
study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, showed “suicides
have risen markedly”. The research group said some deaths may have been
avoidable as some countries showed no increase in suicide rate.
Campaign groups said the findings showed how important good mental
health services were.The study by the University of Oxford and the
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine analysed data from 24 EU
countries, the US and Canada.It said suicides had been declining in
Europe until 2007.
By 2009 there was a 6.5% increase, a level that was sustained until
2011.It was the equivalent of 7,950 more suicides than would have been
expected if previous trends continued, the research group said.
Deaths by suicide were also falling in Canada, but there was a marked
increase when the recession took hold in 2008, leading to 240 more
suicides.The number of people taking their own life was already
increasing in the US, but the rate “accelerated” with the economic
crisis, leading to 4,750 additional deaths.
The report said losing a job, having a home repossessed and being in
debt were the main risk factors.However, some countries bucked the
trend. Sweden, Finland and Austria all avoided increases in the suicide
rate during the recession.
One of the researchers, Dr Aaron Reeves, of the University of Oxford,
said: “A critical question for policy and psychiatric practice is
whether suicide rises are inevitable.He told the BBC: “There's a lot of
good evidence showing recessions lead to rising suicides, but what is
surprising is this hasn't happened everywhere Austria, Sweden and
Finland.“It shows policy potentially matters. One of the features of
these countries is they invest in schemes that help people return to
work, such as training, advice and even subsidised wages.
There are always hard choices to make in a recession, but for me one
of the things government does is provide support and protection for
vulnerable groups these services help people who are bearing the brunt
of an economic crisis.
Andy Bell, of the Centre for Mental Health, said: “The study says
what we feared for some time: that unemployment, job insecurity and many
other factors associated with the recession are associated with poor
mental health and suicide.
“It reminds us how important it is to respond to that need and take
preventative action where we can, and that primary care is properly
resourced and able to identify people who are at risk.” Beth Murphy, of
the charity Mind, said: “Since 2008, we've seen an increasing number of
people contact the Mind Infoline concerned about the impact of money and
unemployment on their mental ealth.
Redundancy and other life circumstances brought about by the
recession can trigger depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts for
anyone, whether they have previously experienced a mental health problem
or not.For some people, these factors can become so difficult to cope
with that suicide may feel like the only option. |