Health
More help and obstacles to protect against suicide
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach wants to set up a new emergency number to prevent suicide. photo
© Kay Nietfeld/dpa
In order to reduce the number of suicides, prevention should be increased. The focus is on a possible new telephone hotline – and more fences.
It’s about help for people in particularly desperate situations: Um In order to prevent suicide more effectively, contact points and advice should be expanded. This is the aim of a prevention strategy presented by Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach. The SPD politician in Berlin said that the number of suicides has not decreased for a good 20 years, with around 10,000 people affected per year. “They are often snap decisions, and they are often tragedies, even for the families.” It is therefore important to reduce the suicide rate. The plans include a new telephone hotline and more security on bridges.
“We cannot be indifferent to the fate of those affected, their relatives and support staff,” said Lauterbach. Most suicides involve men, often older people, who previously had psychological problems. Overall, systematic care for these people must be guaranteed. A legal framework is now planned for this.
Many offers of help are only funded for a limited period of time
The head of the German Society for Suicide Prevention, Ute Lewitzka, pointed out that more people die from suicide every year than from traffic accidents. Of course, every effort is made to prevent accidental deaths. “But until now it hasn’t been so obvious what we’re doing in this country to influence suicidality.” Existing offers are often only financed for a limited period of time. Different areas should now be considered:
Crisis hotline: Lauterbach said a national number such as 113 is conceivable – similar to the well-known numbers 110 for the police and 112 for the fire department. A scientifically based offer of help would have to be available around the clock. Expert Lewitzka explained that it is about very specific advice for acute suicidal thoughts, going beyond the “wonderful work of the telephone counseling services”. Obstacles: An important starting point is to secure and cordon off known risk places with protective structures, for example with fences or safety nets Bridges, high-rise buildings or railway systems. Lauterbach explained that suicide plans often focus on one place. If suicide is not possible there, the intention is often given up entirely. Further measures: Increased training is also planned, for example for specialists in health and care facilities. Lauterbach also mentioned smaller pack sizes of painkillers and a possible register with pseudonymized data on suicides.
Overall, the development of suicidality is complex, said expert Lewitzka. The biggest risk factor is mental illnesses such as depression. The causes could also be strokes of fate, losses, insults, serious illnesses or loneliness. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of suicides in Germany rose to 10,119 in 2022. That corresponded mathematically to almost 28 cases per day. In the longer term, however, the number fell; in 1980 there were around 50 suicides per day. In general, three quarters of suicides were committed by men – on average at around 60 years of age, and for women at around 61 years of age.
Euthanasia law this legislative period?
The topic has now moved onto the agenda after the Bundestag called for prevention to be expanded in July 2023. At that time, two initiatives to create a legal framework with requirements for waiting times and consultations for euthanasia services had failed. Instead, Parliament called with a motion by a large majority to comprehensively expand prevention offerings.
In the meantime, groups of MPs are again looking at a possible second attempt in this electoral term until 2025. As a parliamentarian, Lauterbach was fundamentally open to this. Expert Lewitzka spoke out in favor of sealing the now targeted prevention law before a possible regulation on euthanasia. The brakes provided for this are needed beforehand.
Offers of help:
Do you have suicidal thoughts or have you noticed these in a relative/acquaintance? The telephone counseling service offers help: anonymous advice is available around the clock on the free numbers 0800 / 111 0 111 and 0800 / 111 0 222. Advice via the Internet is also possible at http://www.telefonseelsorge.de.