Suicide prevention strategies for older persons—An integrative review of empirical and theoretical papers

Abstract

The statistics on suicide among older adults are alarming (Greenlee & Hyde, 2014 and the rate is far greater than that of younger people (World Health Organization (WHO), 2014). In the United States, older adults complete suicide at a rate of 16.1 (per 100,000 people). This is higher than the national rate of 13.0 and the rate for young people (11.1) (WHO, 2014). Moreover, older adults suffer from more chronic health problems that can reduce their quality of life (Greenlee & Hyde, 2014). According to Winterrowd et al. (2017), health problems were perceived as more acceptable precipitants for suicide by older adults compared with social or mental issues. A gender difference has been found in the suicide rate for men aged over 60 years (Oyama et al., 2010). The social context is an important factor for understanding suicide (Hjelmeland, 2011) and making sense of the overwhelmingly high suicide rates in older men, especially in the United States, Canada and many European countries (Fässberg et al., 2012).Mental illness is described as a risk factor that contributes to suicide in older adults. The level of mental illness in older adults is even higher than that found among younger people (De Leo et al., 2004;Lapierre et al., 2011). Butcher and Ingram (2018) described mental illnesses such as borderline personality disorder and anxiety disorders as risk factors for suicide. According to Butcher and Ingram (2018, p. 22), 'some older adults experience so much physical and emotional pain that they feel hopeless about being able to change and improve their life'. Depression is described as a risk factor for suicide, especially in older women (Butcher & Ingram, 2018;Crump et al., 2013;Unützer, 2007), while the treatment rate for depression among older men is low (Hinton et al., 2006). Despite the fact that older adults who

Emergency Animal Boarding: A Social Return on Investment

“…Clients of the RSPCA NSW Homelessness and Emergency Boarding program often experience almost complete social isolation, with their companion animals providing their only source of social support [2]. Social isolation and loneliness are serious risk factors for suicide [30]. Conversely, access to social support is associated with decreased risk of suicide [31].…”

Effectiveness of Suicide Safety Planning Interventions: A Systematic Review Informing Occupational Therapy

“…The losses associated with the onset of disability are frequently associated with suicide ideation ( Khazem, 2018 ), and occupational therapists frequently support individuals who have been recently diagnosed. Further, occupational therapists support a range of populations who are at increased risk of suicide, including, but not limited to, persons living with mental illness ( Windfuhr & Kapur, 2011 ), older adults ( Holm et al, 2021 ), Indigenous persons ( Ansloos, 2018 ), persons who experience homelessness ( Fazel et al, 2014 ), veterans ( Kashiwa et al, 2017 ), 2SLGBTQ+ persons ( Hottes et al., 2016 ), youth ( Kirby et al, 2020 ), persons living with physical disabilities ( Khazem, 2018 ), and individuals who experience chronic pain ( Racine, 2018 ). Often a person's health and social circumstances layer over one another to increase the likelihood that suicide ideation can occur.…”