Suicide has stolen lives around the world and across the centuries. Meanings attributed to suicide and notions of what to do about it have varied with time and place, but suicide has continued to exact a relentless toll. In the United States, suicide is the eighth leading cause of death and contributes–through suicide attempts–to disability and suffering for hundreds of thousands of Americans each year. There are few who escape being touched by the tragedy of suicide in their lifetimes; those who lose someone close as a result of suicide experience an emotional trauma that may take leave, but never departs.

Suicide: Cost to the Nation

• Every 17 minutes another life is lost to suicide. Every day 86 Americans take their own life and over 1500 attempt suicide.
• Suicide is now the eighth leading cause of death in Americans.
• For every two victims of homicide in the U.S. there are three deaths from suicide.
• There are now twice as many deaths due to suicide than due to HIV/AIDS.
• Between 1952 and 1995, the incidence of suicide among adolescents and young adults nearly tripled.
• In the month prior to their suicide, 75% of elderly persons had visited a physician.
• Over half of all suicides occur in adult men, aged 25-65.
• Many who make suicide attempts never seek professional care immediately after the attempt.
• Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than are females.
• More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia and influenza, and chronic lung disease, combined.
• Suicide takes the lives of more than 30,000 Americans every year.

Only recently have the knowledge and tools become available to approach suicide as a preventable problem with realistic opportunities to save many lives. The National Strategy for Suicide Prevention: Goals and Objectives for Action (NSSP or National Strategy) is designed to be a catalyst for social change, with the power to transform attitudes, policies, and services. It reflects a comprehensive and integrated approach to reducing the loss and suffering from suicide and suicidal behaviors in the United States. The effective implementation of the National Strategy will play a critical role in reaching the suicide prevention goals outlined in the Nation's public health agenda, Healthy People 2010. Representing the combined work of advocates, clinicians, researchers and survivors, the National Strategy lays out a framework for action and guides development of an array of services and programs yet to be set in motion. It strives to promote and provide direction to efforts to modify the social infrastructure in ways that will affect the most basic attitudes about suicide and that will also change judicial, educational, social service, and health care systems. The NSSP is highly ambitious because the devastation wrought by suicide demands the strongest possible response.

Because suicide is such a serious public health problem, the National Strategy proposes public health methods to address it. The public health approach to suicide prevention represents a rational and organized way to marshal prevention efforts and ensure that they are effective. Only within the last few decades has a public health approach to suicide prevention emerged with good understanding of the biological and psychosocial factors that contribute to suicidal behaviors. Its five basic steps are to clearly define the problem; identify risk and protective factors; develop and test interventions; implement interventions; and evaluate effectiveness.

As conceived, the National Strategy requires a variety of organizations and individuals to become involved in suicide prevention and emphasizes coordination of resources and culturally appropriate services at all levels of government–Federal, State, tribal and community–and with the private sector. The NSSP represents the first attempt in the United States to prevent suicide through such a coordinated approach.

The Goals and Objectives for Action articulates a set of 11 goals and 68 objectives, and provides a blueprint for action. The next step for the National Strategy will be to prepare a detailed plan that includes specific activities corresponding to each of the 68 objectives.

Aims of the National Strategy

• Prevent premature deaths due to suicide across the life span
• Reduce the rates of other suicidal behaviors
• Reduce the harmful after-effects associated with suicidal behaviors and the traumatic impact of suicide on family and friends
• Promote opportunities and settings to enhance resiliency, resourcefulness, respect, and interconnectedness for individuals, families, and communities