Elderly suicide prevention in East Asia

✍ Scribed by H. F. K. Chiu; Y. Takahashi; G. H. Suh

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2003
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 48 KB
• Volume: 18
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0885-6230
• DOI: 10.1002/gps.923

✦ Synopsis

Over one-fourth of the world's suicides occur in China and India . However, most of the research into suicide has been conducted in North America, Europe, and Australia, and very few studies have been done in Asia. Another paradox is that despite the veneration and respect of older people in traditional Asian cultures, the elderly suicide rate is relatively high in many Asian countries. For instance, in rural China, the elderly suicide rate stands at 82.8 per 100 000 for people aged 60 to 84 . With the ageing of the population in many Asian countries, the number of people aged 65 and above will grow dramatically over the next 50 years, increasing by 314%. The regional elderly population will rise from 207 million in 2000 to 857 million in 2050. Thus, it is important to examine the problem of elderly suicide in Asia. This paper describes the current situation of elderly suicide in Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong, focusing on the local suicide prevention programs.