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High-profile suicides shine spotlight on persistent tragedy

3 min read

The deaths by suicide this month of fashion designer Kate Spade and chef-TV host Anthony Bourdain jolted public attention toward what the National Institute of Mental Health has labeled “a leading cause of death in the United States.”

According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that was published in May, suicide was the 10th most common cause of death overall in the United States, claiming the lives of nearly 45,000 people in 2016.

Suicide was the second most common cause of death among people aged 10 and 34, and the fourth most common cause among individuals between the ages of 35 and 54.

There were more than twice as many suicides – 44,965 – in the United States as there were homicides, 19,362.

Online statistics for suicides in Washington County show 19 so far this year as of mid-June, and between 27 and 39 in years 2011 and 2017.

“I know that we have had a big uptick in the number of suicides this year,” said Matthew Yancosek, chief deputy coroner.

The annual coroner’s report notes that Washington County had an estimated population in 2015 of 208,261, up slightly from the 2010 U.S. Census tabulation of 207,820.

Within Washington County, gunshot is consistently the method by which people take their own lives, accounting for between 16 and 25 deaths each year between 2011 and 2017. Coroner Tim Warco breaks down the part of the body struck by a bullet or bullets and has a separate category for shotgun suicides.

This is in keeping with national statistics, in which firearms were the most common method, accounting for almost half of all suicides, or 22,963.

Males dying by their own hands chose firearms nationally. Among females, 33 percent chose poisoning while firearms accounted for 32.1 percent.

Other causes listed are asphyxiation, drowning, hanging, carbon monoxide inhalation, “huffing” (inhaling chemicals), stab wound of the heart, jumping to one’s death, drug overdose and “exsanguination,” which means draining blood.

The coroner’s office also tracks other causes of death, such as accidental drug overdoses, but if there is evidence of intent to harm oneself, the death is ruled a suicide.

A suicide rate is based on the number of people who have died by suicide per 100,000 population. During a 17-year period from 1999 to 2016, the total suicide rate in the United States increased 28 percent from 10.5 to 13.4 per 100,000. The suicide rate among males remained nearly four times higher (21.3 per 100,000 in 2016) than among females (6.0 per 100,000 during the same year).

Local suicide prevention hotlines include Southwestern Pennsylvania Human Services, 1-877-225-3567, and Greene County Mental Health Services, 1-800-417-9460. The phone number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-TALK.

Year/Number of Suicides/Males/Females

2017     38                      32         6

2016     37                      27        10

2015     39                      32          7

2014     28                      22          6

2013     27                      25          2

2012     27                      22          5

2011     30                      27          3

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