Abstract
Introduction
Suicide among older adults is a major public health problem in Quebec. However, the current suicide prevention strategy in Quebec does not include interventions targeted to adults aged 65 and over (1). To this day, only a few studies have evaluated the issue of late-life suicide in Quebec, particularly as a function of sex and age (1,2,3). Thus, the objective of this study was to describe the socioeconomic and clinical characteristics of suicides that occurred between January 2009 and December 2019 among Quebecers aged 65 and over.
Methods
Data was obtained through the combination of six linked health administrative databases. Descriptive analyses were disaggregated by sex and age group (65-74 years, ≥75 years).
Results
During the study period, 1,789 deaths were identified as suicides among adults aged 65 years and older (males: 79%, females: 21%). In men only, the number of suicides increased as material deprivation increased. In contrast, in women aged 75 years and older, the number of suicides increased as social deprivation increased. Among men, suicide deaths were mainly attributed to hanging, strangulation, and asphyxiation, and among women, to poisoning by solid or liquid substance. More women than men were hospitalized in the year prior to suicide for attempted suicide, unintentional accident, mental health disorder, and any other reason. Overall, a greater number of women than men were diagnosed with a mental health disorder in the last 10 years prior to suicide. Unlike mental health disorders, few physical health disorders varied by sex. Approximately 1 in 2 people visited their family physician one month prior to suicide and the vast majority visited one year prior to suicide.
Conclusion
Although there were on average four times more deaths by suicide in men than women, women had a higher number of mental and physical health diagnoses, hospitalizations, and visits to their primary health physician prior to suicide. The results of this study may guide future research on risk factors for suicide among adults aged 65 and over, which in turn can contribute to the development of effective strategies and policies for suicide prevention in older adults in Quebec