New Report: Elder Suicide in Virginia

Greetings,


On behalf of Dr. William T. Gormley, Acting Chief Medical Examiner for the Commonwealth of Virginia, we are pleased to present a new report from the Virginia Violent Death Reporting System called Elder Suicide in Virginia: 2003-2010. This report, which is an update to a previous report, examines suicide among Virginia residents 60 years of age and older. Highlights include:

• From 2003-2010 there were 1,595 elder suicide decedents in Virginia.
• Elder males have a higher risk of suicide than non-elder males.
• Elder suicide risk is highest in the southwest area and lowest in the northern area.
• While most elders use a firearm in the fatal suicide, those that used poisons commonly used their own prescription medications. 
• Mental health problems and physical health problems were the two most common factors in elder suicide.

This report is available at: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/medExam/documents/2013/pdf/Elder%20Suicide%20in%20Virginia%202003%202010.pdf

(Marc Leslie, VVDRS Coordinator)