Research shows that the rate of suicide among children and teens has been on a steady rise in the past two decades. Children and teens are susceptible to suicide as they experience despair so deep, they believe suicide to be their only solution. The paper will discuss the rise in suicide among American teenagers and identify solutions that can be adopted to mitigate the problem. The rising rate of teenage suicide is a public health problem that can be solved by sensitizing teenagers on all matters pertaining to suicide and their predisposition to the issue and addressing poor mental health services.
Many teenagers are struggling with their mental health. According to data from the CDC, the suicide rates for females aged 15-19 have doubled from 2007-2015, reaching its highest point in forty years, while that of boys within the same age bracket has increased by 30 percent within the same time frame (Holmes, 2017). These statistics bring to light the alarming rate at which suicide is happening. The US recorded 305 and 1289 suicides among girls and boys aged between 15-19, respectively which grew to 1537 suicides among boys and 524 suicides among girls within the same age range (Holmes, 2017). Numerous researches conducted regarding the rise of suicide rates have found several issues to contribute to the increase. Moreover, White teens are more susceptible to suicide and suicidal behavior (O’Donnell & Saker, 2018). These researches also cite numerous reasons for the increased rates of suicide. Suicide proves to be a public health problem that must be efficaciously dealt with.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Schools and parents can alleviate the issue of teenage suicide by providing teenagers with necessary information on the subject. When it comes to mental health care, there is a stigma around it, which makes teenagers likely to refuse to see a counselor. This often affects young men and people of color who may refuse to seek help even though they may be experiencing suicidal ideation (O’Donnell & Saker, 2018). While a sizeable percent of the American teenage population struggles with suicidal thoughts, they are unaware of how to handle the issue. Parents and school staff can help by speaking to these teenagers and letting them know that having mental issues is not something one needs to be ashamed of (Fox, 2018). They can then let them know that seeking counseling is the best way to deal with the issues. Moreover, providing teenagers with information on suicide hotlines and text lines will reduce suicide rates. Teenagers will have the necessary information on how to deal with their suicidal ideation making them less susceptible to committing suicide.
The next step in alleviating the problem is to address the issue of poor mental health services. It is no lie that the American healthcare system is plagued with issues of its own. When primary care physicians notice teenagers have mental health issues, they often recommend them to specialists (Fox, 2018). Although this move is meant to help them, children from poor families are likely to not receive the care they need. Mental health services are not covered by insurance at the same level as physical illnesses, while only a handful of psychiatrists work within primary care clinics (O’Donnell & Saker, 2018). This affects the chances of everyone having access to the care they need as the services can be quite expensive. More psychiatrists should opt to work in primary care clinics to increase their availability to clients who need their help to remedy this issue. Moreover, insurance should begin to cover mental health care, thus ensuring that clients can receive the help they need (O’Donnell & Saker, 2018). By taking these steps, children and teenagers will have access to proper mental health, thus reducing their susceptibility to suicide.
The rising rate of teen suicide is quite alarming. Through sensitizing teenagers on all matters about suicide and their predisposition to the issue, teenagers are likely to seek help when faced with suicidal thoughts. Moreover, addressing the issue of poor mental health services in the country may help deal with the barriers that teens may face when trying to seek help, thus reducing the chances of teenage suicide. Suicide prevention plans should also be directed to children in the 10-14 age bracket since these children are heading towards the risky age where suicide is prevalent.
References
Fox, M. (2018). More teens are attempting suicide. It’s not clear why. nbcnews.com https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/more-kids-especially-girls-are-attempting-suicide-it-s-not-n874481
Holmes, L. (2017). Suicide rates for teen boys and girls are climbing. huffpost.com. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/suicide-rates-teen-girls_n_59848b64e4b0cb15b1be13f4
O’Donnell, J. & Saker, A. (2018). Teen suicide is soaring. Do spotty mental health treatments And Addiction treatment share blame? usatoday.com. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/03/19/teen-suicide-soaring-do-spotty-mental-health-and-addiction-treatment-share-blame/428148002/
