Suicide and Suicide Attempt Rates in Europe, 1989-1993 (IN: Suicide Prevention: a Holistic Approach, edited by D De Leo, A Schmidtke, & R F W Diekstra)

This chapter discusses suicide & suicide attempt rates in Europe during the period 1989-1993. All centres in the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study on Parasuicide used a common definition of suicidal behaviour & a common monitoring sheet. Rates of completed suicide, suicide attempts, & the covariation between these two are reviewed. The sociodemographic characteristics of suicide attempters are described. The differences in the suicide rates between the various countries are enormous. Reasons for these differences are discussed. (27 refs.)