A Public Health Approach

Lynn Mangini, MDChild & Adolescent Psychiatry

HH/IOL & CCMC May 20, 2010

ADOLESCENTS 15 TO 19 SUICIDE IS THE THIRD LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH

CHILDREN 10 TO 14 SUICIDE IS THE FOURTH LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH

During the 2003-2004 year, six NYU students completed suicide.

Two of the students died within a two-month period after jumping off balconies in Bobst Library.

The Bobst Library , the main library on campus, is 12 stories high.

In response, NYU permanently installed Lexan barriers made of transparent plastic around the balconies in Bobst library. (Willner 2010)

The school also blocked access to certain balconies within the residence halls and installed locks on all the windows, which prevent students from opening the windows more than a few inches.

This was in response to the completed suicide of a freshman at NYU who jumped off the roof of his 15-story dormitory in 2007.

It was noted that some NYU students have reacted negatively to these measures.

(Willner 2010)

According to Dr. Lanny Berman, Executive Director of the American Association for Suicidology:

Studies from around the world have shown that building barriers to “jump sites” are effective in preventing suicides.

(Willner 2010)

Design: prospective follow-up study Goal: educate parents of youth at high risk for

suicide about limiting access to lethal means for suicide.

Setting: emergency departments Lethal means: included firearms, medications

(over the counter and prescribed), and alcohol.

Results: family members of at-risk youth who received means restriction counseling were more likely than those not exposed to remove or lock up firearms and medications. (Kruesi 2005)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Suicide: Facts At a Glance Summer 2009 [Online]. (2009). National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, CDC (producer). Available from URL: www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/index.html

Heron, M. (2010) Deaths: Leading causes for 2006. National vital statistics reports; vol 58, no 14. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. Table 1. Deaths, percentage of total deaths, and death rates for the 10 leading causes of death in selected age groups, by race and sex: United States, 2006.www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr58/nvsr58_14.pdf

Kruesi, M (03/17/2005). Emergency Department Means Restriction Education. Registry of Evidence-Based Suicide Prevention Programs. www.sprc.org/featured_resources/bpr/ebpp_PDF/emer_dept.pdf

Mulkern, V, Raab B, Potter, D (2007) A Rising Tide: Use of Emergency Departments for Mental Heath Care for Connecticut’s Children: Report One: Children Enrolled in Husky A. Child Health and Development Institute. CT: Farmington.

Mulkern, V, Isvan N, Potter, D & Huntington N (2007) A Rising Tide: Use of Emergency Departments for Mental Heath Care for Connecticut’s Children: Report Two: statewide Utilization 2001-05. Child Health and Development Institute. CT: Farmington.

Shain, B & The Committee on Adolescence (2007) Suicide and Suicide Attempts in Adolescents. Pediatrics. 120 (3):669-676.

Willner, S (May 4, 2010 – 12:00am). Suicide Prevention at Peer Schools May Guide Cornell. The Cornell Daily Sun. www.cornellsun.com