Weekly News Roundup May 20 – 26, 2023

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Social stress, problem-solving deficits contribute to suicide risk for teen girls – American Psychological Association
May 25, 2023
According to a new study, adolescent girls who experience interpersonal problems often and have greater difficulty than peers solving these interpersonal problems are at greater risk for suicidal behaviour. “Importantly, problem-solving deficits under distress may increase risk for future suicidal behavior only in combination with greater cumulative interpersonal stress in real life,” said lead author Olivia Pollak.

Their Son Died of Suicide in the Navy. They’re Honoring His Final Wish by Saving Lives – People Magazine
May 25, 2023
Teri and Patrick Caserta lost son Brandon Caserta, 21, to suicide in 2018. Brandon was an officer in the American navy. Since Brandon’s death, Teri and Patrick launched a 4.5 year legislative effort in Washington to push forward the ‘Brandon Act,’ which would allow soldiers, sailors, and other military personnel to get psychological help when they ask for it, without having to go through a chain of command, and without retaliation. The Act is now being implemented by the American Department of Defense.  “If you look at the military, more than half of the population think pursuing therapy is a sign of weakness,” says M. David Rudd, a professor of psychology at the University of Memphis. “The Brandon Act removes the barriers to care as well as the stigma.”  

Better bipolar diagnosis may reduce suicide rates in boys – new research – The Conversation
May 24, 2023
Among adolescent suicides, psychiatric disorders are present in 44-76% of deaths, with bipolar making up 5% of those deaths. Authors Adrian Desai Bostrom and Peter Andersson of the Karolinska Intitutet say, “This means that severe mental illness is the most influential and preventable predictor of death by suicide.” The majority of adults with bipolar disorder start having symptoms in their youth, but there is often a lag between when symptoms start and when diagnosis and treatment happen. This article explores the authors’ research, conducted in Sweden, which indicates that there are fewer suicides among boys who lived in regions with more bipolar diagnoses. They also found that regions with higher implementation rates of evidence-based psychiatric treatments had a substantial reduction in adolescent suicide deaths, “This indicates that early diagnosis and treatment for severe mental illness may be key for successful suicide prevention in male adolescents across the world,” say Bostrom and Andersson. The article goes on to discuss in depth how bipolar diagnosis and treatment can help prevent suicide. 

Funeral home workers worry about youths’ mental health as repatriations to India increase – CBC
May 24, 2023
**Warning: Graphic descriptions** A funeral home in Ontario is drawing attention to suicide among international students, after seeing an increase in the repatriation of the remains of young people to India. Lotus Funeral and Cremation Centre funeral director Harminder Hansi says, “I’m burnt out. As a parent, when I see how they died, the cause of death, that makes me upset. Why [did] this happen, why we … as a community, why [can’t we] stop this?” Federal suicide statistics do not track the deaths of international students specifically, so it’s difficult to know exactly how many are dying. Lotus believes that many of the repatriations are suicide deaths. Jaspreet Singh, founder of the International Sikh Students Association, says that if the suicides of international students aren’t tracked, it’s difficult to raise awareness for the issue. Amanjit Kahlon, manager of community development at Punjabi Community Health Services says a lot of the young people he sees accessing mental health services are missing home,  “A lot of these folks come from large families where somebody’s checking in on them, asking them how their day was. When they come here, a lot of them are alone. They’re in a new space, but they don’t have that connection or that social support.” Colleges Ontario has recently come out with a new international standard of practice, which will come into effect by June 2024 in 23 colleges in the province. One standard includes “supports and services to promote student well-being and safety,” ensuring students are provided with a listing of medical and mental health services, including culturally responsive services.

Northern Manitoba First Nation sounds alarm over isolation after youth suicides – CBC
May 20, 2023
Chief Darryl Wastesicoot of York Factory First Nation is calling on the government to take immediate action to address isolation in the remote community. Chief Wastesicoot says that isolation has played a role in recent suicide deaths and behaviours in the community. “Maybe we don’t know all the answers as to how this is happening, but we have a very, very good idea as to why this is happening,” says Wastesicoot. York Factory is about 900 km north of Winnipeg, and is accessible only by aircraft or ferry after winter ice roads are closed. Wastesicoot says that more could be done to increase accessibility and decrease isolation, such as running ferries for longer periods of time, and increasing the number of passengers allowed on flights. “We have needs,” said Wastesicoot. “But those needs are not being addressed because we have a small population.… We want the government to come to our community and really work with us on all our issues.”

This high school senior’s science project could one day save lives – NPR
May 20, 2023
Siddhu Pachipala, a high school student in Texas, developed an app that has won him national recognition in the US for its innovative approach to suicide intervention. The app uses AI to help young people with their mental health and identify when they’re at risk of suicide. It scans text, such as a person’s Instagram posts and text messages, to flag suicide risk. The app isn’t currently downloadable but Pachipala hopes that one day it will be. Some experts are skeptical about the accuracy and efficacy of AI to predict suicide risk, like Matt Nock, a Harvard researcher. Nock says, “A lot of this work is really well-intended, trying to use machine learning, artificial intelligence to improve people’s mental health… but unless we do the research, we’re not going to know if this is the right solution.”