Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T13:04:55.823Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A Cross-cultural Study of Suicide Among the Elderly in Singapore

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Ee Heok Kua  and
Soo Meng Ko
Ee Heok Kua*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, National University of Singapore
Soo Meng Ko
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, National University of Singapore
*
∗National University Hospital, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 0511
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In the general population of Singapore the mean annual suicide rate over 1985–88 was highest in the Indians (20.4 per 100 000), followed by Chinese (15.8 per 100 000), and the Malays (2.4 per 100 000). However, in the elderly population (65 years and over) the rate was highest in the Chinese (61.2 per 100 000) with Indians second (30.5 per 100 000), and Malays still the lowest (3.2 per 100 000). Among elderly Chinese, women had a higher suicide rate than men.

British Journal of Psychiatry (1992), 160, 558–559

Type
Brief Reports
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 160 , Issue 4 , April 1992 , pp. 558 - 559
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1992 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Barraclough, B. M. (1971) Suicide in the elderly. In Recent Developments in Psychogeriatrics (eds Kay, D. W. K. & Walk, A.). British Journal of Psychiatry (special publication no. 6), 87–97.Google Scholar
Chia, B. H. (1981) Suicidal Behaviour in Singapore. Tokyo: SEAMIC.Google Scholar
Kua, E. H. (1990) A Study of Mental Disorders in Elderly Chinese Living in the Community in Singapore. Singapore: National University of Singapore.Google Scholar
Kua, E. H. & Tsoi, W. F. (1985) Suicide in the island of Singapore. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 71, 227–229.Google Scholar
McClure, G. M. (1987) Suicide in England and Wales, 1975–1984. British Journal of Psychiatry, 150, 309–314.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Miller, M. (1978) Geriatric suicide: the Arizona study. Gerontologist, 18, 152–158.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ministry of Health (1984) Report of the Committee on the Problems of the Aged. Singapore: Ministry of Health.Google Scholar
Murphy, H. B. M. (1982) Comparative Psychiatry. New York: Springer-Verlag.Google Scholar
Resnik, H. L. P. & Cantor, J. M. (1970) Suicide and aging. Journal of the American Geriatric Society, 18, 152–158.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Robins, L. N., West, P. A. & Murphy, G. E. (1977) The high rate of suicide in older white men: a study testing ten hypotheses. Social Psychiatry, 12, 1–20.Google Scholar
Schicher, D. & Bergman, S. (1979) Patterns of suicide among elderly in Israel. Gerontologist, 19, 487–495.Google Scholar
Teoh, J. I. (1974) An analysis of completed suicide. Annals of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 3, 117–124.Google Scholar
Whitlock, F. A. (1970) Migration and suicide. Medical Journal of Australia, ii, 840–848.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.