HIDDEN TOLL OF LIFE ON HOLD
CORONA CRISIS Services reveal suicide spike fears
MENTAL health advocates fear the number of suicides will increase by up to 50 per cent as businesses crawl out from the coronavirus pandemic.
LIVIN co-founder and chief executive Casey Lyons said governments had to take into account the mental health implications when making decisions in regards to lifting restrictions. “Mental health awareness is now more crucial than ever before. Early anecdotal evidence suggests suicides could potentially increase by 50 per cent during the aftershock phase of the coronavirus pandemic,” he said. Gold Coast clinical psychologist Dr Kamal Dhaliwal said there had been an increased call for mental health assistance since the lockdown began.
MENTAL health advocates fear the number of suicides will increase by up to 50 per cent as businesses crawl out from the coronavirus pandemic.
LIVIN co-founder and chief executive Casey Lyons said governments had to take into account the mental health implications when making decisions on lifting restrictions.
“Mental health awareness is now more crucial than ever before. Early anecdotal evidence suggests suicides could potentially increase by 50 per cent during the aftershock phase of the coronavirus pandemic,” he said.
“During these unprecedented times of uncertainty and ambiguity, our mental health is being tested and ongoing support and care for our community is of the utmost importance. Mental health doesn’t discriminate.”
Preliminary data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows 3046 people took their lives in 2018, with an average of 8.3 deaths a day across the country. Queensland recorded the second-highest number of suicides in Australia, 786, behind NSW with 899. From 2016-18, 271 Gold Coasters died of suspected suicide.
Griffith Professor David Crompton OAM, from the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention, is undertaking a study on the impacts business shutdowns have had on the suicide rate.
He said while data showed there had been a slight increase in suicides, it was still “early days”.
“Some reports state an increase will be at 50 per cent, but there is difficulty to predict this, as it depends on how long the economic impact is expected to continue,” Prof Crompton said.
“If you look at COVID-19 in terms of natural disasters, there is often a decline in the rate immediately after an event as social support is put in place, but two to four years later there starts to be an increase due to the withdrawal of that support.”
Gold Coast clinical psychologist Dr Kamal Dhaliwal said there had been an increased call for mental health assistance since the lockdown began.
“Often what happens after a natural disaster, there is an initial state of confusion and vulnerability, then there is a point where it is over. With coronavirus, no one knows how long you need to put your life on hold.
“Economic uncertainty reduces people’s choices – where they live, what they eat and do. People are fearful of where their next pay cheque will come from.”
National mental health charity SANE Australia said any mental health response must go hand-in-hand with financial aid.
The organisation said work also needed to be done to further fund mental health services for the anticipated increase in demand.
“These services are often underfunded to start with,” deputy CEO Dr Michelle Blanchard said.
“Certainly in areas where the economy relies on tourism and a relatively young workforce we are likely to see a larger impact on mental health.”
Currumbin Clinic chief executive Kate Cross said the private mental health facility had an increase in admissions and inquiries and “we are going to see the impacts of COVID-19 restrictions for months to come”.
Last month, the Federal Government pledged $48.1 million to support mental health. It will focus on improving research and real-time data on the mental health impact of COVID-19 and supporting accessible services for vulnerable groups.