The Sun-Herald last year reported on calls for the NSW government to follow South Australia’s lead and create dedicated suicide prevention legislation which would establish a whole-of-government and whole-of-community approach to tackling this tragic loss of life.
The legislation would require lawmakers to consider the mental health impacts of policies in all areas of government,such as housing and welfare,and to address the social,economic and cultural factors which influence our suicide rates.
More than 3000 people in Australia take their own lives each year.iStock
Nationally,suicide and self-inflicted injuries are the second leading cause of premature death,with more than 3000 deaths by suicide each year – an average of about nine deaths a day. In NSW alone there was a total of 940 suspected or confirmed suicide deaths in 2023.
A holistic approach to responding to suicide will allow us,as a community,to probe why males are three times more likely to take their own life than females,and why suicide rates are highest among middle-aged men and older males.
It will hopefully also enable us to prevent suicide continuing to be the leading cause of death for young Australians aged 15 to 24 years,to interrogate the link between suicide risk and education levels and address why the rate of suicide among young First Nations people is three times that of young non-Indigenous Australians.
As we report today,the state government has launched a consultation process which will ensure the legislation is shaped by the input of people who have had personal experience of suicidal distress and bereavement.
It will seek feedback from groups who are disproportionately at risk,such as the LGBT community,men,young people,and First Nations people. Consultation will run until August with the legislation to be introduced into parliament next year.
Understanding the spectrum of factors that can lead to suicide is crucial – from the systemic to the environmental.
The most recent Suicide Prevention Australia community tracker,a quarterly survey of the wellbeing of 1000 adults,found elevated levels of distress in the community,with close to 50 per cent of Australians reporting cost-of-living and personal debt distress beyond normal levels.
About a quarter reported distress due to family and relationship breakdown beyond normal levels,and a quarter cited housing affordability. The survey found stress levels due to these issues have been steadily increasing for the past 18 months.
Statistics also show that almost half of the people who die by suicide have not been in contact with a hospital or mental health service in the 12 months prior to their death.
In a nutshell,there are more stressors but less support.
Minister for Mental Health Rose Jackson said that suicide prevention is a societal issue as much as a health issue which requires collective action.
“It is not always the case that mental ill-health is the primary driver of distress leading to suicide. Addressing the social determinants of health that can lead to suicide is crucial in reducing the likelihood of a person reaching suicidal crisis,” she said.
The state government has committed to delivering this suicide prevention legislation within this term of parliament. It says it wants to ensure every part of the government accepts it can play a role and that action to reduce death by suicide becomes a collective responsibility.
The factors that contribute to suicide are complex and the impact on family and friends is profound. Behind every suicide statistic is a family and a community who are left to grapple with a devastating loss.
The Sun-Herald supports the establishment of this legislation and the philosophy that a holistic approach can create a robust framework to reduce the incidence of the preventable tragedy of suicide.
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