PUTRAJAYA: There are 1,100 suicide cases that have been reported by the National Suicide Registry Malaysia from 2008 to 2011 based on the postmortems carried out.
While the Health Ministry and Health Informatics Centre statistics showed a total of 338 deaths from 2010 to 2014 in hospitals caused by intentional self-harm.
Health Ministry director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the number of death among men is higher compared to women, especially those aged between 25 to 44 years old.
The multicultural Malaysia, which is undergoing modernization, is exposed to higher stress rate and suicide tendency scenario, Dr Hisham said.
“There are many factors that influence people to commit suicide including mental disturbances, depression, substance abuse, life tragedy, financial situation and poverty as well as history of family suicide or physical health.
“Most people commit suicide by hanging and jumping off tall buildings.
“Suicide behaviour involves a variety of spectrum from getting the idea to kill oneself, planning, suicide attempts and the actual suicide, which contributes to self-physical harm, emotional harm to the families as well as negative impact on the economy,” he said.
Dr Hisham said this after launching the ‘Love Life, Raise the Hope’ seminar, held in conjunction with the suicide prevention month 2015 themed Reaching Out and Saving Lives, here, today.
The one day seminar covers topic on suicide situation in Malaysia, suicide risk and assessment, and handling suicide person.
World Health Organisation (WHO) Preventing Suicide, a global imperative report estimated more than 800,000 people around the world commit suicide every year.
This number is equivalent to one death by suicide every 40 seconds while for one suicide incident; there are 20 attempted suicide cases.
Globally, suicide is among the 10 leading causes of death in the world, and the second leading cause of death for those aged 15 to 29 years old.