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Suicide Prevention Strategies

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Guest Editor
Alexopoulos Evangelos Medical PC, Ellispontou 11, 156 69 Athens, Greece
Interests: occupational stress; employee wellbeing; ESG activities; occupational medicine; stress management; environmental health; preventive medicine; health promotion
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Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

At the opposite end of a meaningful life and happiness, suicide has a profound societal impact. Suicidal ideation encompasses an interplay of personal resources with physical, mental, and social challenges and thus suicide prevention requires a multifactorial and integrated approach. Socioeconomic factors such as unemployment, financial difficulties, discrimination, bullying, lack of social support, and work-related stressors are associated with suicidal behavior. Higher suicide rates have been monitored in specific occupational groups such as farmers, healthcare professionals, as well as emergency and protective service occupations (e.g., police, firefighters, armed forces, security officers). In this context, job resources could be crucial in suicide prevention by the early identification of predisposing physical and mental ill-health and vulnerability at the personal level and by crafting a supportive work environment. Occupational and primary health services, where available, could affect work stressors and coping resources but efforts/initiatives should be positioned within community, education, business, agriculture, armed forces and other society sectors. Media and politics also hold important roles.

This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, entitled “Suicide Prevention Strategies”, offers an opportunity to publish high-quality multi-disciplinary research. We welcome research related to suicide and suicide attempt with high intent epidemiology (rates, trends, patterns among countries, gender, age, and occupational group), research on indicators and surveillance initiatives (to account for the constellation of risk factors and the heterogeneity of data quality), and papers related to prevention strategies and interventions.

Dr. Evangelos C. Alexopoulos
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • suicide
  • attempted suicide
  • suicide statistics
  • suicide risk assessment
  • psychosocial risks
  • job stress
  • working conditions
  • suicide prevention programs
  • suicide prevention intervention

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

5 pages, 299 KiB  
Communication
A Call for Preventing Suicide by Hanging from Ceiling Fans: An Interdisciplinary Research Agenda
by Kishan Kariippanon, Coralie J. Wilson, Timothy J. McCarthy and Kairi Kõlves
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(15), 2708; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16152708 - 29 Jul 2019
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 5574
Abstract
Hanging is a common method of suicide in several countries. Even as global suicide rates decrease, there is no evidence of suicides by hanging declining. There is limited research by type of hanging, and only a few papers present suicide by hanging from [...] Read more.
Hanging is a common method of suicide in several countries. Even as global suicide rates decrease, there is no evidence of suicides by hanging declining. There is limited research by type of hanging, and only a few papers present suicide by hanging from ceiling fans. Our paper proposes a research agenda that will: specify the size of the problem of hanging by ceiling fan (Stage 1: Surveillance), use standard engineering product development processes to modify ceiling fans for reducing their lethal capacity (Stage 2: Design Testing and Redevelopment), and examine the resulting beta- and release-build fans for safety and potential to reduce suicide in community samples (Stage 3: Evaluation). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Suicide Prevention Strategies)
9 pages, 266 KiB  
Article
Suicide Mortality Patterns in Greek Work Force before and during the Economic Crisis
by Evangelos C. Alexopoulos, Katerina Kavalidou and Fani Messolora
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(3), 469; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030469 - 6 Feb 2019
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 10241
Abstract
Background: The global recession of 2007 has attracted research attention in regard to a possible increase of deaths by suicide among employed populations. The aim of the current study was to update the first Greek study on suicide mortality among broad occupational [...] Read more.
Background: The global recession of 2007 has attracted research attention in regard to a possible increase of deaths by suicide among employed populations. The aim of the current study was to update the first Greek study on suicide mortality among broad occupational groups during 2000–2009, with the last available data covering the first period of economic crisis and recession in Greece. Methods: Data on suicide deaths for the age groups of 15–39, 40–49 and 50–59, between 2000–2013 were retrieved from the national statististical authority of Greece, ELSTAT. The coding of suicide used was X60–X84 (intentional self-harm), based on the 10th International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). Comparative mortality ratio (CMR) and exact 95% confidence intervals (CI) are presented. Results: Males and females in the occupational group of clerks exhibited high and increased CMRs during the crisis period (2010–2013). Although high ratios for males in elementary, agricultural and fishery and armed forces occupational groups were monitored during the whole period, a decrease was evident during the crisis period. Increased trends in CMRs during the crisis were monitored for both males and females in the broad occupational group of members including managers, executives and directors. In addition, females especially in the 50–59 age group showed increased ratios and trends in several occupational groups during the crisis, especially in technologists and associate professionals, plant and machine operators and assemblers, professionals, and craft and related trade workers. Conclusions: Austerity-related stress should alert key stakeholders and provide mental health and suicide prevention interventions for employed occupations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Suicide Prevention Strategies)
20 pages, 320 KiB  
Article
A Look at Culture and Stigma of Suicide: Textual Analysis of Community Theatre Performances
by Sarah Keller, Vanessa McNeill, Joy Honea and Lani Paulson Miller
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(3), 352; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030352 - 26 Jan 2019
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 7640
Abstract
Stigma against suicidal ideation and help-seeking is a significant barrier to prevention. Little detail is provided on what types of stigma interfere with help-seeking, how stigma is expressed, and how to reduce it. Five groups of two ethnically diverse community theatre programs were [...] Read more.
Stigma against suicidal ideation and help-seeking is a significant barrier to prevention. Little detail is provided on what types of stigma interfere with help-seeking, how stigma is expressed, and how to reduce it. Five groups of two ethnically diverse community theatre programs were formed to analyze differences in Eastern Montana Caucasian and Native American adolescents and young adults’ experiences with stigma about mental illness and mental health treatment that affect help-seeking for suicidal thoughts and experiences. Over a ten-week period, a grassroots theatre project was used to recruit members from the same population as the audience to write and perform a play on suicide and depression (n = 33; 10 males, 23 females; 12 Native American, 21 Caucasian, ages 14–24). Using textual analysis, the community- and campus-based performance scripts were coded for themes related to stigma. Both ethnic groups reported that stigma is a barrier to expressing emotional vulnerability, seeking help, and acknowledging mental illness. We found that Caucasians’ experiences were more individually oriented and Native Americans’ experiences were more collectively oriented. Understanding the cultural bases of experiences with stigma related to mental health treatment for suicide is necessary to create educational programs to reduce stigma for diverse groups of adolescents and young adults. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Suicide Prevention Strategies)
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