Washington,
D.C. (September 6, 2007)—A new report released today by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows the largest single-year increase in suicide among youth aged 10-24 years old in 15 years. The significant increase demonstrates the need for more information on how to prevent violent deaths, including suicide, which could be provided by the National
Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS).
“NVDRS data can allow us to understand the underlying causes behind this dramatic and huge increase of suicide among youth so that we can better inform our prevention efforts,” said Sean Gerow, Chair of the Suicide
Prevention Action Network USA Board of Directors. “It is crucial and timely data – the time to expand NVDRS is now.”
NVDRS, which is currently implemented in 17 states, is a comprehensive, linked reporting system that collects and centralizes information on violent deaths, including suicides, from a variety of sources to create a clearer picture of the circumstances and to aid violent death prevention efforts. The program is designed to:
- Collect and link data about all violent deaths, including all homicides and suicides;
- Collect and link data at the state level, with funding and coordination provided at the national level, by the CDC;
- Compile and combine data from medical examiners, coroners, death certificates, crime labs, and law enforcement officers, providing a more complete understanding of when, where, and how violent deaths occur; and
- Include timely information on the circumstances of the deaths and the relationship between victims and offenders. To protect confidentiality, names and personal identifiers are not part of the national dataset.
The National Violence Prevention Network (www.preventviolence.net) is working to fully implement NVDRS in the United States to enable every state to design and implement effective violent death prevention programs. While state-specific information provides enormous value to local public health and law enforcement officials, national data from all 50 states, the U.S. territories and the District of Columbia must be obtained to complete the picture and establish effective national suicide prevention policies and programs.
View the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report at: http://www.preventviolence.net/pdf/MM5635%20eBook.pdf
[BACK] |
