Suicide is Australias unspoken tragedy

British fans of Australian soap operas Neighbours and Home and Away could be forgiven for thinking that life in Australia is a beach – but latest statistics reveal that Australians are now taking their lives in greater numbers than ever with rural Australia hardest hit.

The latest government figures published in The Weekly Times show that suicide deaths across Australia are now 55% higher than road fatalities.

Massive spending by governments, and extensive media campaigns have helped reduce the road toll from 3078 in 1988 to 1731 in 1998.

However, during the same 10-year period suicide prevention programs have been crying out for money with suicide numbers rising from 2197 in 1988 to 2683 in 1998.

In addition, rural communities have rates of suicide up to 39% higher than in cities.

Australia has managed to reduce road deaths through graphic advertising campaigns; the campaigns being so successful that other countries have mirrored them.

But a similar tact cannot be used for suicide, with experts fearing that talking publicly about suicide may only push more people to make the fatal decision.

Suicide Prevention Australia national secretary Alan Staines said in most cases suicide can be prevented.

“Timely intervention for people feeling suicidal can and does help,” he told the newspaper.

The biggest problem is funding. The Weekly Times revealed that the National Youth Suicide Prevention Program received $A31 million over four years to June, 1999 with a promise of another $39m over the next four years in the latest budget.

By comparison, the state of Victoria alone spent $A23.5m in 1998-99 on road accident prevention.

Mr. Staines told The Weekly Times that more funds were needed for the many good programs being run by volunteers around the country.

“In a city the size of Sydney there are at most two or three support groups. It is no where near enough,” he said.

But experts are at pains to point out that suicide is by no means an epidemic. In fact, the overall rate has not changed much in 50 years. The rate of 14 suicides for every 100,000 Australians is much the same as it was in 1921.

But what has changed is the age of the victims and where they live, according to the newspaper.

Where suicide was once the domain of the old, disturbed or sick, the young and healthy are taking their lives in greater numbers.

And they are mostly men, with men committing suicide four times the rate of women. Suicide rates for men have trebled since the early 1960s while female rates have remained static.

Suicide is also much more prevalent in rural Australia. Country people are 30% more likely to kill themselves than their city counterparts. In towns with less than 4000 people, the rate is 12-fold what it was 30 years ago.

The highest rates are among rural men aged 25 to 44, followed by those between 15 to 24. Men suffering marriage or relationship breakdowns are among those most at risk.

Suicide experts are still trying to work out why suicide rates are higher in the country.

Rural poverty and unemployment, the hardships of farming, loss of services in towns, relationship breakdown, young peoples confusion about their sexuality, and mental illness all play a role according to psychiatrist and suicide researcher Dr Michael Dudley.

In particular, mens tendency not to talk about their problems is a major catalyst. “Theres a tendency to be tough and tough it out,” Dr Dudley said.

Mr. Staines said more funding was needed for education programs to help young people, particularly men, talk about their problems and seek help when they felt they could no longer cope.

He and other experts believe suicide on the whole is preventable if people with suicidal feelings are identified and helped early on. Most suicides are triggered by an event and the crisis could be over within 24 hours.