Suicide figures up - 419 deaths last year
Newspaper Article
Aug 13, 2007
THE economy is buzzing, the future looks rosy, but more people here are quietly ending their lives.
A total of 419 people committed suicide last year, up from 346 in 2003.
The suicide rate per 100,000 residents - a sobering indicator in population statistics - is also on the upswing, growing from 9.3 in 2003 to 10.3 last year, figures from the Registry of Births and Deaths reveal.
It is the fourth straight rise in as many years.
Two age groups - men in their 40s and women in their 50s - stand out. Their suicide numbers outpaced population increases.
Mrs Tan Yoke Yin, executive director of suicide-prevention group Samaritans of Singapore (SOS), said that interpersonal, social and psychological pressures could be driving people over the brink.
Such problems were expressed by a majority of the callers to the SOS crisis-line in recent years.
Men in their 40s are a worry for Mrs Tan. Last year, 65 such men killed themselves, the highest for any age group in either gender. It works out to more than one a week.
They are in the so-called 'sandwich generation' which has the burden of caring for young children and ageing parents. Work stress also tends to be high in this age group.
Mrs Tan said: 'Men are also far less likely to seek help than women. If their coping mechanism is not strong, they could be in trouble.'
More women in their 50s have also gone over the edge. Last year, 33 killed themselves, up from 16 in 2003. They too were in the sandwich generation.
While veteran counsellor Anthony Yeo, thinks that suicide rates and the economy's health are not necessarily co-related, the 'pressure to perform at a time when almost everyone else is doing well could increase the stress for some'.
Mr Yeo, consultant therapist at the Counselling and Care Centre, added: 'This, in turn, could make them suicidal.'
National University of Singapore social work professor Kalyani Mehta pointed out that a buzzing economy did not translate into a decline in social problems.
On the contrary, there are 'more divorces, more bankruptcies, the population is ageing and there is a growing sandwich generation that is feeling the stress,' said Dr Mehta, who is also a Nominated Member of Parliament.
A different explanation was offered by psychiatrist Chia Boon Hock, who has been studying suicides here since 1970.
Dr Chia noted that coroner's courts were increasingly returning more suicide verdicts rather than leaving a case as 'open' or 'undetermined'.
Whatever the reasons for the rise, seeking help early remains the main way to try and lower suicide rates.
Mrs Tan said: 'Caregivers or even potential victims must be taught to seek help early.'
Too often, caregivers were too preoccupied with work or family concerns and missed the warning signs which could have led to help from a counsellor or a psychiatrist.
Ms Mary Lee (not her real name), 32, who is being treated for depression, knows all too well the importance of seeking help.
A series of family-related problems - including abuse by her stepmother - caused her to attempt suicide more than once, the latest in December last year.
'Sometimes I felt captive to suicidal thoughts,' said the teacher who now lives alone. 'Talking to a professional can help set you free.'
radhab@sph.com.sg
SOS short of volunteers
THE 24-hour crisis hotline run by suicide-prevention group Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) is in a crisis of its own: it desperately needs more volunteers.
The hotline has been handling about 50,000 calls - or about 135 a day - the past couple of years, but the number of new recruits to man the phones is falling.
According to figures from the group's annual report last week, the number of calls handled by the hotline annually has grown from 43,255 in the year ending March 2005 to 49,025 in March this year.
Only about one in seven callers, however, was deemed as being at risk of actually committing suicide.
The number of new recruits, meanwhile, has fallen from 74 to 35 during the same period. Currently, the group has 175 active volunteers to man its lines.
But that is not enough. 'With suicide rates on the rise, we really need more volunteers,' said SOS executive director Tan Yoke Yin.
She worries that one of the reasons for a recent dip in calls could be that not all calls are being picked up.
Volunteers provide an important lifeline to distressed people who call the hotline.
'I don't think anybody really wants to die,' said a 60-year-old SOS volunteer who wanted to be known only as Rani. 'Talking to us gives callers the time to stop and think.'
Volunteers put in three to four hours manning the lines three times a month and do one 12-hour night shift during the same period.
'Nights are crucial and very busy for us,' said Rani, a housewife who has been manning the lines for nearly a decade. 'That's when many of the calls come in.'
To volunteer, log on to www.samaritans.org.sg or call the SOS hotline
Aug 13, 2007
THE economy is buzzing, the future looks rosy, but more people here are quietly ending their lives.
A total of 419 people committed suicide last year, up from 346 in 2003.
The suicide rate per 100,000 residents - a sobering indicator in population statistics - is also on the upswing, growing from 9.3 in 2003 to 10.3 last year, figures from the Registry of Births and Deaths reveal.
It is the fourth straight rise in as many years.
Two age groups - men in their 40s and women in their 50s - stand out. Their suicide numbers outpaced population increases.
Mrs Tan Yoke Yin, executive director of suicide-prevention group Samaritans of Singapore (SOS), said that interpersonal, social and psychological pressures could be driving people over the brink.
Such problems were expressed by a majority of the callers to the SOS crisis-line in recent years.
Men in their 40s are a worry for Mrs Tan. Last year, 65 such men killed themselves, the highest for any age group in either gender. It works out to more than one a week.
They are in the so-called 'sandwich generation' which has the burden of caring for young children and ageing parents. Work stress also tends to be high in this age group.
Mrs Tan said: 'Men are also far less likely to seek help than women. If their coping mechanism is not strong, they could be in trouble.'
More women in their 50s have also gone over the edge. Last year, 33 killed themselves, up from 16 in 2003. They too were in the sandwich generation.
While veteran counsellor Anthony Yeo, thinks that suicide rates and the economy's health are not necessarily co-related, the 'pressure to perform at a time when almost everyone else is doing well could increase the stress for some'.
Mr Yeo, consultant therapist at the Counselling and Care Centre, added: 'This, in turn, could make them suicidal.'
National University of Singapore social work professor Kalyani Mehta pointed out that a buzzing economy did not translate into a decline in social problems.
On the contrary, there are 'more divorces, more bankruptcies, the population is ageing and there is a growing sandwich generation that is feeling the stress,' said Dr Mehta, who is also a Nominated Member of Parliament.
A different explanation was offered by psychiatrist Chia Boon Hock, who has been studying suicides here since 1970.
Dr Chia noted that coroner's courts were increasingly returning more suicide verdicts rather than leaving a case as 'open' or 'undetermined'.
Whatever the reasons for the rise, seeking help early remains the main way to try and lower suicide rates.
Mrs Tan said: 'Caregivers or even potential victims must be taught to seek help early.'
Too often, caregivers were too preoccupied with work or family concerns and missed the warning signs which could have led to help from a counsellor or a psychiatrist.
Ms Mary Lee (not her real name), 32, who is being treated for depression, knows all too well the importance of seeking help.
A series of family-related problems - including abuse by her stepmother - caused her to attempt suicide more than once, the latest in December last year.
'Sometimes I felt captive to suicidal thoughts,' said the teacher who now lives alone. 'Talking to a professional can help set you free.'
radhab@sph.com.sg
SOS short of volunteers
THE 24-hour crisis hotline run by suicide-prevention group Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) is in a crisis of its own: it desperately needs more volunteers.
The hotline has been handling about 50,000 calls - or about 135 a day - the past couple of years, but the number of new recruits to man the phones is falling.
According to figures from the group's annual report last week, the number of calls handled by the hotline annually has grown from 43,255 in the year ending March 2005 to 49,025 in March this year.
Only about one in seven callers, however, was deemed as being at risk of actually committing suicide.
The number of new recruits, meanwhile, has fallen from 74 to 35 during the same period. Currently, the group has 175 active volunteers to man its lines.
But that is not enough. 'With suicide rates on the rise, we really need more volunteers,' said SOS executive director Tan Yoke Yin.
She worries that one of the reasons for a recent dip in calls could be that not all calls are being picked up.
Volunteers provide an important lifeline to distressed people who call the hotline.
'I don't think anybody really wants to die,' said a 60-year-old SOS volunteer who wanted to be known only as Rani. 'Talking to us gives callers the time to stop and think.'
Volunteers put in three to four hours manning the lines three times a month and do one 12-hour night shift during the same period.
'Nights are crucial and very busy for us,' said Rani, a housewife who has been manning the lines for nearly a decade. 'That's when many of the calls come in.'
To volunteer, log on to www.samaritans.org.sg or call the SOS hotline
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