The Problem in Assessment and Treatment of Suicide in Illinois
There are no state mandated programs to train any professionals in Illinois in suicide prevention or intervention. No certification in suicide prevention, intervention and postvention (aftercare) is required for licensing for nurses, social workers, counselors, teachers, law enforcement officers, clergy or any other health care provider including doctors.
There are no school mandated and funded programs to train youth in suicide prevention and using mental health support in a suicidal crisis.
There is no protocol required for licensing and accrediting hospital trauma centers for suicide prevention.
Suicide in Illinois: *
More Illinoisans kill themselves by suicide than by homicide, HIV disease, or deaths by impaired or drunk driving.
Suicide rates are 7 times higher for males than for females in Illinois. Men are 10 less likely to access any kind of health care.
In the years between 1996 and 2000, 17% more Illinoisans died from suicide than homicide.
Suicide rotates between the second and third leading cause of death for adolescents in Illinois. The first leading cause of death is accidents, many of which are self-destructive acts, which are not reported as such.
More adolescents, age 15-24 die by suicide than by malignant neoplasms, diseases of heart, chronic respiratory diseases and congenital malformations, deformations, and chromosomal abnormalities, COMBINED.
15% of suicide deaths in Illinois occur among people 15-24 years of age.
Suicide rates are 25 times higher for whites than for blacks in Illinois.
For all ages and ethnic backgrounds, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in Illinois.
Firearm suicide deaths comprise over 60% of completed suicides.
Males comprise approximately 82% of all suicide deaths.
For every completed adolescent suicide, there are an estimated 100 attempted suicides.
For every completed adult suicide, there are an estimated 25-35 attempted suicides.
In Illinois, the annual estimated cost of completed and medically treated youth suicide acts ages 0-20 is $539,000,000. (Children's Safety Network Economics and Insurance Resource Center, 1999)
The suicide rate for Illinois’ non-urban counties is nearly 5% higher than the rate for urban counties.
*Unless otherwise noted, data comes from Illinois Department of Public Health, Bureau of Statistics.
