Suicide leading cause of Ont. gun deaths

OLDER MEN IN RURAL AREAS MAKE UP MAJORITY

A new study indicates that suicide is the leading cause of firearm-related death in Ontario, with older men in rural areas making up the majority of those fatalities.

The study — published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday — looked at 6,483 gun-related injuries, including deaths, in the province between 2002 and 2016.

Self-harm accounted for 1,842 of the 2,723 gun deaths in Ontario in that span, or 67.6 per cent.

Assault accounted for 40.2 per cent of non-fatal firearm injuries, and 25.5 per cent of deaths.

The study found that more than two thirds of self-harm-related injuries occurred in older men living in rural areas, most of whom died from their injuries.

It said that highlights a need for suicideprevention strategies targeted at men aged 45 and older who live in rural areas.

“Higher rates of firearm ownership in rural regions may contribute to the higher rates of firearm-related injuries secondary to self-harm in rural Ontario,” the study’s authors wrote. “...The presence of a firearm in the home is a recognized risk factor for all types of firearm injuries and has been associated with a fivefold increase in the likelihood of suicide.”

The study also found that young men, predominantly in urban neighbourhoods, and whose households were within the lowest fifth of income, were overrepresented in the group of assault cases.

Researchers said that between 2013 and 2017, 16 of Canada’s census metropolitan areas experienced an increased rate of firearm-related violent crime.

The study said that during that same five-year period, there was a 20 per cent increase in the homicide rate in Canada, from 1.45 to 1.8 per 100 000 population, with almost half - 43 per cent - of the increase occurring in Toronto.

In its interpretation of the data, the report said that homicides typically get more media coverage because of the rising rates but suicides are a more pressing issue.