About 1.25 million people in Taiwan have mental health problems and 13.2 percent of them have attempted suicide, according to a study released on Sunday by the Taiwan Suicide Prevention Center (TSPC).
The study showed that 10.5 percent of those with mental health problems have seriously thought about committing suicide in the past month, while 20.4 percent have considered ending their lives in the past year.
The results of the survey were released during a seminar held by the center and the Taiwanese Society of Suicidology to mark World Suicide Prevention Day, which falls on Thursday.
Noting that suicide is a global issue, TSPC director Lee Ming-been (李明濱), citing WHO statistics, said that more than 800,000 people commit suicide every year, with an average of about one person committing suicide every 40 seconds and one person attempting to kill themselves every four seconds.
TSPC chief executive Liao Shih-cheng (廖士程) said that a recent survey found that many people are aware of the importance of suicide prevention and are willing to help people seeking assistance.
Liao said that according to the survey, 7.6 percent of respondents said one of their friends had attempted to commit suicide in the past year. The survey also showed that 80.8 percent of respondents said they would try to dissuade people from trying to commit suicide, while 11.8 percent said they are willing to accompany those with who are thinking of committing suicide to seek medical attention.
According to the survey, which was carried out using a “feelings thermometer,” 6.2 percent of respondents were found to have mental health problems.
Of those suffering from mental disorders, 13.2 percent have attempted to take their own lives, but only 22.2 percent have sought medical help, the survey showed.
The poll also showed that 59.9 percent of respondents said they are prepared to lend a helping hand to prevent a suicide.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
RSS