Resource Tag: SINGAPORE

The Suicide Opinion Questionnaire was administered to 2 samples of university students, 1 from Singapore & 1 from Australia. The relationship of self-reported religiosity to attitudes toward suicide was also examined. Singapore students, in comparison to the Australian sample, tend to perceive suicide as a less acceptable & normal phenomenon, & tend to disagree less […]

Data on adolescent suicide in Singapore was collected from all cases recorded by the coroner since 1980. Indian adolescents had the highest suicide rates & Malays the lowest. No significant differences in methods were noted. The main factors associated with suicide in all ethnic groups were personal problems, mental illness, physical illness & financial problems. […]

342 cases of suicide in Singapore (1986) were studied. Rates were highest among Indian males. Jumping was the method used by 60% of the subjects, & the predominant associated factor as ascertained by the coroner was illness (51%), both physical & mental. About 40% had seen a doctor in the year prior to their death, […]

A retrospective study of 156 cases of parasuicide among male conscripts in Singapore was done. The rate of parasuicide was 12.5/100,000 soldiers at risk. Attempters were from the lower rank, & one-third were undergoing basic training at the time of their attempts. Drug ingestion was the commonest method, followed by jumping from a height. Most […]

This study analyzed data from the coroner’s office to obtain suicide rates by age, sex, ethnicity, & method of suicide among the Singapore population. Among the general population, the mean annual suicide rate from 1985-88 was the highest among the Indians, followed by the Chinese, & the Malyas. However, in the elderly population, the rate […]

This news report describes the suicide of Teh Cheang Wan, Singapore’s Minister of National Development. Teh committed suicide while under investigation for corruption. Honour & good name was very important to Teh, & the Singapore government is known for clean, efficient government. This article details the publically-known evidence against Teh. (VM)

Provides brief overviews of the types of services rendered by The Samaritans, a report on the membership & the treasurer’s & auditor’s reports for the 1990 fiscal year.

The suicide rate in Singapore has remained at 9-11 per 100,000 over the past decade. Comparing the age specific suicide rate, elderly people (60 years and above) have a much higher rate (21.3 per 100,000) than the young (5 per 100,000). The data also indicate that elderly men are more prone to kill themselves than […]

In 60 elderly patients referred for psychiatric assessment, the commonest psychiatric disorders were depressive illness & dementia. Patients with depression were younger. 7 patients with depression were admitted for attempted suicide & 5 were referred because of headache & chest discomfort. The main reasons for referral of patients with dementia were disturbed & confused behavior. […]

This paper focuses on attempted suicide rates among the Chinese (112/100000), Malays (51/100000) & Indians (344/100000) & why there are such great differences between them. The author argues that Indian women are subjected to frustrations & stresses in their roles as daughters, wives & daughters-in-law; with no outlet for venting this frustration, women resort to […]

An examination of the suicide rates in Singapore shows the Chinese & Indians to be significantly more prone to suicide than the Malays. The author briefly discusses the cultural meaning of sucide for each group. Neither Buddhism nor Hinduism explicitly condemns sucide & for the Chinese & Indians, suicide is accepted as a way of […]

This study is based on data from coroners’ files (1969-76) and a psychological post-mortem study of all suicides in 1974 (n=57), 39 males and 18 females. Aged suicide, demographic data of the aged suicide population, methods used and causative factors are recorded, analyzed and discussed. Reactions of surviving relatives are described. Unique features of aged […]

This is the only prospective study of suicides in Singapore. Out of a total of 1,873 patients registered & treated in a psychiatric practice from years 1968-1976, 25 patients were found to have committed suicide. Of these, 14 were found to suffer from schizophrenia & 11 from depression. The suicide risk of all the patients […]

Recent trends in the incidence & methodology of suicide in Singapore are presented & compared with a similar study done 20 years previously. Results show that the crude suicide rate has been increasing since 1977 & that the rate was highest in elderly males. Comparison with the previous study showed a significant increase in the […]

In 1971, there were 1133 attempted suicides & 230 suicides (recorded) in Singapore. 94% of attempts, & 14% of suicides, were self-poisoning. Jumping & hanging made up more than 75% of all suicide deaths. 36% of suicides were due to mental illness comprising mainly of schizophrenia (50%), and depressive illness (39%), & 27% due to […]

The taboo against incest is very strong among the Chinese. Unlike some other cultures, incest is not an acceptable theme in mythology or literature & there have been no reports of incest in the medical literature from Singapore. This paper presents 3 case histories of attempted suicide by Chinese females who had been victims of […]

In a study of suicide in Singapore in 1980 there were 230 cases & the suicide rate for the general population was 9.5/100000. The age-specific rates increased steeply after 50 yrs & there was a male preponderance especially in the age group 60 yrs & over. Comparing the 3 major ethnic groups in Singapore, the […]

Among the major psychotic illnesses which are academically crippling to university students, most fall into the broad category of schizophrenia. A study of admissions for the period 1956-1973 (18 academic sessions) revealed 0.51% (75) of 14652 freshmen developed overt schizophrenia. The attrition rate (including 5 suicides) was as high as 66.67%. The author suggests schizophrenics […]

Deaths due to unnatural causes (accidents, suicides & homicides) which have occurred in Singapore have been studied with reference to age, sex, & ethnic group variations & the mode by which the subject meets his death. The salient epidemiological features have been discussed & comparisons made with other countries.

A statistical survey of recorded attempted suicides in Singapore for the year 1971. 1133 attempts were recorded, compared to 239 completed suicides (a ratio of 5:1). Females 20-29 & indians were at highest risk. Self-poisoning accounted for 94% of attempts but only 14% of completed suicides. The authors state that while this study lacks absolute […]

This study is based on an investigation of suicide deaths of 112 former psychiatric patients in Singapore from 1969-72. Major findings are: at high risk are those suffering from puerperal psychosis, psychotic depression, & schizophrenia; a low rate of suicide among Malays & a high rate among Chinese; schizophrenics were not as determined as depressed […]

The author discusses the epidemiology of suicide in Singapore, categorizing precipitating factors & stressing the need for caregivers to know certain facts about suicide before they can do meaningful work with the potentially suicidal. (NBB)