At-risk seniors supported to reduce suicide

United Way funding to Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention Centre of BC is helping to increase supports offered to seniors in crisis.

Canadian seniors have among the highest suicide rates in the country. Men over the age of 85 have the highest rate of completed suicides of all age groups in Canada. In BC, the suicide rate for all men averages out to 17.5 deaths per 100,000 people; men over 85 have double that rate.

A $40,000 allocation by United Way of the Lower Mainland is making it possible for more seniors at risk and in crisis to access support services, build community connections and maintain their participation in the community.

United Way allocated $375,000 throughout the Lower Mainland this year in support of programs that enhance seniors’ independence and community participation.

The Connecting ‘senior friendly service’ to Seniors in Crisis program is designed to improve senior crisis services across the Lower Mainland. Collaborating with senior centres, staff will deliver crisis intervention, suicide awareness and response training to volunteers and staff responsible for outreach services to isolated seniors.

Senior peer counsellors gatekeeper training, which started in the West End of Vancouver in conjunction with the West End Seniors Network, will be provided to other senior centres across the Lower Mainland.

In 10 years, seniors will outnumber children in many Lower Mainland communities.

The aging of the Canadian population suggests that both the numbers and volume of suicide rates amongst older Canadians can be expected to increase as a consequence of the cumulative effects of longer life expectancy, pressure on health resources and more older people facing physical illness and disabilities.

In many cases involving suicide, the act itself is not always an impulsive decision. In fact, many people who attempt suicide talk about it beforehand, without any immediate plans to carry it out. By training people who interact regularly with seniors to detect early warning signs, this program hopes to reduce the numbers of seniors in crisis.