Suicide figures - Our most pressing issue

The Central Statistics Office has published some alarming figures in its annual release of information on births, deaths and marriages in 2009. Marginally over one-third of the births were to unmarried women, but almost 56% of those births were to cohabiting couples.

There were 28,898 deaths registered in 2009. The most almost alarming aspect was the marked increase in the number of suicides. There were 527 deaths registered as suicides in 2009, compared with 424 the previous year. This amounts to an increase of 24% in one year.

Males accounted for 80% of the suicides, with the largest increase among those aged 25 to 44. The increase has been largely blamed on the downturn in the economy – the job losses, the spiral in debts, and the fear of house repossession.

Those are major contributing factors to marital strain, marriage breakdowns and mental depression. They, in turn, can lead to suicide, a problem which needs to be addressed urgently.

Within the past couple of months the head of the National Office for Suicide Prevention warned that it would be a “national disaster” if the figure for suicide went over 500. It already has exceeded that number significantly.

There has been a tendency for coroners’ courts to return open verdicts rather than classify deaths as suicide. Hence experts suggest that there are grounds for suspecting that the real figure for suicides in 2009 may have been well over 600, because there were 195 deaths recorded as by “undetermined intent”.

With the economic recession biting harder this year, the suicide rate for 2010 could be even higher. We must learn the true extent of the problem, if society is to tackle it effectively.

There is a need for an urgent debate on the reform necessary in terms of the coroners’ courts returning a verdict of suicide. The coroner’s sensitivity towards the feelings of family members is understandable. A finding of suicide is inevitably painful for the families involved, but surely it is no more painful than what the family is already going through.

Most of their friends and neighbours usually know already that it is a case of suicide, so it is only society in general that is being deceived. As a society we have to know the true extent of the problem before we can tackle it properly. This is necessary to prevent as many suicides as possible, as well as helping families to cope with suicide when it does occur.

Sweeping suicide under the proverbial carpet has not worked in the past. The problem is growing at an alarming rate, and we must recognise the true extent of the problem in order to learn from the mistakes.