NZ teen suicide worst in world

New Zealand has topped the global teen suicide rankings, again.

Our position in the world was cemented yesterday by a Unicef report that called into question the wellbeing of Kiwi kids.

The Innocenti Report found New Zealand’s rate for teen suicides (15-19) was the highest of the 41 OECD and EU countries included.

Meanwhile, Portugal topped the list at the right end, with a teen suicide rate of 1.7 per 100,000. Italy and Spain were close behind.

The report put New Zealand’s teen suicide rate of 15.6 people per 100,000, based on data from 2010. The rate had dropped slightly from the previous comparable report that used 2005 data but more recent figures show we were now headed in the other direction.

Provisional suicide statistics released by the Coroner’s Office, show 51 (16.02 per 100,000) people in the age group died by suicide in the year to June 2016 and 52 (16.41 per 100,000) the previous year.

In an average week two young people would kill themselves, and about 20 young people would be hospitalised for self-harm, according to Youthline.

‘We’ve created what we have’

Kaleb Hurn was one of 46 in the 15-19 age bracket who killed himself during 2014. The Waikato teen was 17 when he took his own life.

His father David Hurn said a mix of societal factors played a big part in the high teen suicide rate.

A lack of social skills and faceto-face interactions, an ingrained fear of failure, a fear of being different and bullying all played a part.

Hurn said New Zealand would never completely eradicate teen suicide but the rates could be significantly lowered by teaching children a few fundamental things.

‘‘We need to show our kids it’s OK to be different . . . there’s nothing wrong with failing and it’s OK to make mistakes. It’s building up that resilience,’’ Hurn said.

Kiwis needed to look in the mirror and start making changes if they wanted to fix the problem.

‘‘We’ve created what we have, now it’s up to us to create what we want.’’

The government is in the midst of writing its new national suicide prevention strategy, which is out for public consultation. But mental health advocate and comedian Mike King quit the consultation panel, calling the draft strategy ‘‘deeply flawed’’.

‘A constellation of factors’

Unicef chief executive Vivien Maidaborn said suicide rates were influenced by a teen’s socioeconomic background, poverty, cultural influences and inequality.

The Unicef report ranked New Zealand 26th for equality.

The report also found 19.8 per cent of Kiwi kids were living in relative income poverty, and the neonatal mortality rate was 3.1 children per 1000 (the same as in 2005), and the teenage birth rate was 23.3 births per 1000 females aged 15-19, a reduction from 28.7 per 1000 in 2005.

Government response

Acting Minister for Children Amy Adams said a refreshed suicide prevention strategy, the Mental Health Strategy and implementation of the Youth Mental Health Project, as well as anti-bullying strategies would help address the problem.