The Epidemiology of Attempted Suicide in Helsinki, Finland 1989 – 1993 (IN: Attempted Suicide in Europe: Findings From the Multicentre Study on Parasuicide…, edited by A J F M Kerkhof)

This chapter notes that suicidal behavior is a serious medical & social problem in Finland. Helsinki unemployment rates increased from 1.3% in 1989 to 13.4% in 1993. In 1989, 1482 events involved 1158 persons; (1993: 1179 events, 1027 persons). Data for 7 months in 1990 & for 2 month periods in the years 1991-93 are reported. Male rates remained higher than female rates during 1989-93. This systematic study shows that parasuicide rates & trends can be studied accurately in samples of 2 months.