The epidemiology of suicide in India : exploring national and regional determinants of suicide to inform appropriate suicide prevention policies

Abstract

Suicides in India accounts for over a quarter of the global burden of suicide. Despite the severity of the problem as an emerging public health priority, there has been limited investigation of the population-level socio-demographic factors associated with suicide in India, which might better inform population-based suicide responses. The thesis focussed on some of the deficiencies in suicide epidemiology in India, specifically those relating to social, cultural, and geographic determinants that may be important distal antecedents to suicidal behaviour. Publicly available, National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), suicide data was used to carry out the analyses. The potential over/under reporting of suicide cases in the NCRB data was also analysed by comparing it to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) data. The results of this thesis highlight an urgent need for the development of a national suicide prevention plan in India. A national plan should focus on both, public health, and health care strategies, with cost-effective public health strategies prioritised in the short term given the lack of resources in the health care system of India. Targeted prevention activities should prioritise restriction to lethal suicide means, responsible reporting of suicide among different media platforms and improvement in the quality of suicide surveillance data. Other strategies may include gatekeeper training, awareness programmes in various different settings (e.g. schools), increases in the social and mental health workforce, welfare policies to protect livelihoods, and policies promoting gender equality and addressing gender-based violence.

Date of Award	2021
Original language	English