Suicide: The Numbers and Current Initiatives for its Prevention

A recent study has revealed alarming trends in suicide rates in Malaysia. The study looked at the age-standardized suicide rates between the years 2000 and 2019 using data gathered from the WHO Global Health Estimates. They then compared the figures to three other groups of countries– ASEAN nations, nine countries from the middle east and north African (MENA) region, and high-income countries from the G7 organization (Table 1). Table 1.

Comparison with country-groups Study findings Age-standardized suicide rates (ASDR) in Malaysia between 2000 and 2019 were 4.9 to 6.1 per 100,000 population. The estimated 2019 ASDR in Malaysia was 5.77 per 100,000 population which was below the global average of 9 per 100,000 individuals. There was a gradual decline (19.7%) in suicide rates between 2000 and 2013 before a 17.8% increase in suicide rates between 2014 and 2019. A similar trend was seen…