Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 8, 1991 TAG: 9104080112
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHICAGO LENGTH: Medium
Just 13 percent of a group of 54 suicide victims over age 65 had fatal diseases, 24 percent had chronic diseases and 98 percent had weekly contact with friends and relatives, the study found.
"In the public's view, the elderly person who commits suicide lives alone, faces economic hardship or physical decline. But such cases are rare," said David C. Clark, a psychologist at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center and author of the study.
Clark and his colleagues performed "psychological autopsies" to determine the state of mind of study group members - about one-third of those who killed themselves in 1990 in Cook County, which includes Chicago. The "autopsies" were based on in-depth interviews with families and friends.
Robert Yufit, a psychologist at Northwestern University Medical School, cautioned that reaching generalized conclusions from a sample of only 54 cases may be misleading.
"It would be a unique finding, if it's really true," Yufit said. "It probably should be replicated on a larger sample."
Suicides among the elderly are among the highest of any group. But little concern has been expressed, compared with suicide in teen-agers and the middle-aged, because fewer productive years are being lost, Clark said.
Researchers found that suicide victims experienced relatively few stressful life events such as recent death of a spouse or financial ruin.
Most victims suffered mental health problems, Clark said, a finding consistent with research on other age groups. When the data are complete, Clark said he expects to find that 90 percent had mental health problems.
The study already has found that 65 percent were depressed and 19 percent were alcoholic. Few had received psychiatric treatment.
Survivors nearly always professed surprise at the suicides, though nearly half of the deceased spoke of suicide in the last six months of life, Clark said.
"Relatives and friends didn't take these statements seriously," he said. "Mental health professionals have done a poor job teaching the public about depression and alcoholism."
Clark said the public and health professionals must become more sensitive to the signs of mental illness, especially depression. Depression is marked by sadness, weight loss, sleep disturbance and lethargy.
"If physicians and family members understood what was going on, there would have been an opportunity to reverse the despair and hopelessness," he said.
The typical elderly suicide victim in Cook County was a white male who had been a blue-collar worker. More than half died from gunshot wounds.
Yufit said Clark's conclusions conflict with previous studies, which found elderly people who are feeling suicidal usually feel some sort of loss.
"Often they feel rejected by family or their health is declining, which also is stressful," he said.
by CNB