Elderly Suicide

The elderly population is increasing due to baby boomers. Depression in the older adult age 60 and over is becoming more prevalent. Many older adult men suffer in silence and try to hide their emotions for as long as possible. Men don’t like to talk about their feelings so the symptoms manifest in different ways. The suicide rate is four time more likely in older adult men and they are more likely to die from a suicide attempt than a women. (Pfizer, 2016)

Suicide was seen as a just way to die if one was faced with unendurable suffering - be it physical or emotional”. Throughout time, suicide has been viewed and dealt with in countless ways. Recently in America, the problem has grown increasingly. In the past decade, suicide rates have been on the incline; especially among men. According to the New York Times (2013), “From 1999 to 2010, the suicide rate among Americans ages 35 to 64 rose by nearly 30 percent… The suicide rate for middle-aged men was 27.3 deaths per 100,000, while for women it was 8.1 deaths per 100,000”. A 30 percent increase with an average of 19 more male suicides than female suicides is certainly an issue for both genders, and an epidemic for men. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (n.d.), found that in 2010, 38,364 suicides were reported, with 78.9% being men. The economic recession, unemployment, and various other factors are speculated to be responsible for this incline in male suicide. As of 2010, an estimated 30,308 men ended their own lives, and it seems as if there is a great risk of that number increasing each year.

Throughout the years suicide rates have increased and is a significant public health issue. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. However, suicide rates are high among the elderly, yet research on suicide prevention in older adults remains neglected.

With the growing number of veteran related suicides, there is a cause for concern on what may be the contributing factor or factors to yield such outcome. The current rate of suicide for veterans in the United States 18 to 22 incidences daily, which is higher than ordinary non veteran citizens (1).

There is a shortage of registered psychiatric nurses willingly to the elderly patients with mental illness. Unfortunately, the shortage is enlarging due to increasing in retirement rate and low in recruitment and application rate (Fisher, 2011) (Browne et al., 2013). There are causes for the gap of aged mental health nurses compare to another area of nursing. If the shortages keep on growing, elderly mental illness patients will not have enough support. According to Australian Beuro of Statistic on the Causes of Death (2012), elderly aged above seventy-five had the higest rate of suicide comepare to other age-group. Without the support required, the amount of elderly committing suicide will increase. This further empharsis the importance of having enough mental health nurses to support elderly patients and reduce the rate of death caused by

Every suicide effects more than the individual’s life, in truth it impacts families, communities and economic well-being of our nation. According, Piscopo, Lipari, Cooney, and Glasheen, (2016) “Suicide is an important public health problem in the United States and a tragedy for all involved—families, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and communities. In 2014, suicide was the 10th leading cause of death in the United States overall.1 Among people aged 10 to 34, suicide was the second highest cause of death, and for those aged 35 to 54, it was the fourth highest cause of death” (p. 2).

(2017). Preventing suicide: A technical package of policies, programs, and practices. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/suicideTechnicalPackage.pdf

Because I work in an hospital that cares for populations at great risk for substance abuse and untreated mental issues and disorders, I get to see patients that have, or at some time will try to commit suicide, I would like to take this opportunity to learn how to properly assess the community, to help those in need, and to educate their families and friends to look for, and recognize signs that can prevent suicides, toward this end, it is important that I have the necessary knowledge to assimilate the information in this study, in a manner that will provide greater benefit not only to my

This article begins by referencing an incident of a 74-year-old woman in the Netherlands whom requested euthanasia for her chronic dementia. The author (Lane) explains how euthanasia is so commonplace in the Netherlands and how they use subjective criteria such as “"unbearable suffering," "due care" and, fuzziest of all, especially in cases of dementia or mental illness, a ‘voluntary, well-considered request’”. The author goes on to explain how the current euthanasia laws are problematic and “In some cases, physicians knowingly pushed the limits of [the] law”. The author goes on to conclude that if euthanasia were to be expanded beyond what it is now, the impaired patient’s ability to consent would become doubtful or null. The legislation in

Legalizing assisted suicide increases the risk of death for all people, especially those 65 years –old and older. There are people who believe old age is the worst time of their life and assisted suicide could be a probable solution. However, what they do not realize is by allowing assisted suicide, they will never be able to experience the best time of their lives. David Jones and David Paton, British scholars, claim assisted suicide is responsible for assisted and non-assisted deaths, rising 6.3 percent and an even higher percentage for the elderly, which raised 14.5 percent (Kheriaty). By allowing this to happen, we are losing all the memories, traditions, and experiences our elderly generation has to offer us due to their unstable emotional

Many nursing home residents, including the elderly residents at Hoosier Christian Village, struggle daily with symptoms of situational depression, anxiety, and various mental illnesses brought on by inactivity, decline in physical and mental competence, and the unavoidable confrontation with death. In addition, many residents are admitted to the residence because of previous mental illnesses; therefore, future development or recurrence of these diseases is nearly inevitable.

Suicide and dementia are two rising phenomena’s in society today. Dementia is seen in older citizens, and “the prevalence of severe dementia can reasonably be estimated as approximately 4% in persons over age 65” (DEMENTIA BOOKp.17). Suicide is seen among teens, and people suffering from mental illness. Now, there is a correlation between suicide and dementia starting. Suicide is “death caused by self-directed injurious behavior with an intent to die as a result of the behavior” (Violence Prevention). People who commit suicide think that there is no reason for them to be alive, and that no one cares about them. They feel they are better off dead. Some people have suicidal ideations, where they think about taking their life, and some attempt

Drawing from Bronfenbrenners (1986) ecological approach, to best understand suicide in the elderly it is necessary to consider the multiple levels of an individuals environment. On a micro level of practice, communication and ability to recognise depressive and suicidal inclinations is important. Research has shown that often during final visits with professionals there is a communication breakdown, where suicidal intentions are missed by practitioners and not disclosed by the elderly (Bunney et al., 2002). It is imperative that social workers establish trust and develop rapport with the elderly, conduct a holistic assessment and use active listening skills to identify and pursue questioning surrounding suicide to reduce the barriers resulting from stigma. In addition, social workers have the ability to influence change on a grander scale.

Suicide is currently the 10th leading cause of death in the United States (Suicide and Self-Inflicted Injury, 2017). On average, 121 Americans complete suicide each day (CDC Fatal Injuries Report 2015, 2015). The American people are living longer with advances to medical care and technology, yet suicide rates continue to rise. According to the CDC, suicide rates have increased by 24% from the year 1999 to 2014 (Curtain, Warner & Hedegaard, 2016). Consequently, the suicide epidemic continues to grow with no clear path to prevention. This literature review was conducted using the Robert Morris University Library online databases. Databases accessed include PubMed…………., from the years 2000 to 2017. Overall, most the articles obtained are

Mental health issues such depression, anxiety is a health burden that negatively affects many people’s quality of life, especially older adults. In this Literature review we will use the terms older adults, elderly, baby boomer when referring to people ages 65 and older. “The rate of suicide in those aged 65 years and over has been increasing over the past three decades in most industrialized countries, with marked increases in both attempted suicides and death by suicide in the late 1980s” (Deuter, 2016). Older adults in the United States and many countries around the world die by suicide at elevated rates compared with younger adults (Conwell, and Van Orden, 2016). In addition to the age different, suicide seem to affect man and women differently with the baby boomer population. Men die more from suicide compare to women, even though females suicide attempt rate is higher (Heisel, 2006). Deuter reports that, in 2013, 7215 people aged 65 years and over died by suicide the USA, which accounts for 17.5% of the national total of suicide deaths (2016). The elevation of suicide in the elder is not only limited to the United States. According to Conwell (2013), the number of adults 65 year and older who died in the US is 6000 and 20,000 died worldwide, in 2010. The elderly population have become increasing prone to committing suicide and considered to be a population at risk. We will focus on the cause, challenges/controversy, and solutions that were used to address the issue of