These statistics, according to the Board Chairman of the Mental Health Authority (MHA), Estelle Appiah, were alarming when compared to the total recorded for the entire 2023, which was 48 completed suicides and 594 suicide attempts.

“You can see the numbers are increasing. Suicide is a very serious problem that requires a serious public health approach for prevention,” she stressed.

Ms Appiah, who said this yesterday at the 2024 World Suicide Prevention Day Commemoration Forum in Accra, further disclosed that men formed the majority of completed suicides.

Suicide

Suicide is when people harm themselves with the intent of ending their lives and they die as a result. A suicide attempt is when people harm themselves with the intent of ending their lives but they do not die.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 720,000 people take their own lives every year and a majority, that is about 73 per cent are in low and middle-income countries such as Ghana.

Ghana has designated September as National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month with the theme for this year as “Changing the narrative on suicide” and a call to action, “Start the Conversation”.

Risk factors

Ms Appiah mentioned the risk factors for suicide to include a previous attempt, mental illness, alcohol and drug abuse, gambling, financial and job crisis, chronic illness and pain, criminal or legal issues and impulsive behaviour.