After increasing steadily from 2005 - 2015, workplace suicides in the U.S. hit a new record high in 2016 – 291 – according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. A total of 1,719 male and female workers committed suicide on the job between 2003 and 2007. Those numbers only takes into account suicides that occur at work.
Among occupational groups, male employees of construction and mining companies had the highest suicide rate: 53.2 deaths per 100,000 in 2015, up from 43.6 in 2012.
With suicide rates rising in the U.S., the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is proposing the establishment of 988 as a national 3-digit number to help people access suicide prevention and mental health services. While a National Suicide Prevention Lifeline already exists – and can reached at (1-800-273-TALK) – FCC Chairman Ajit Pai says an easy-to-reach number would result in more people getting the assistance they need.
The idea sounded fishy to Dr. Adriane Fugh-Berman. She was not about to put her name on a ghostwritten article for a medical journal. But she was curious, so she played along for a while.
An associate professor at Georgetown University Medical Center, Fugh-Berman was contacted in 2004 by a medical communications firm working for drug maker AstraZeneca with a proposition: Would she like an author credit on a forthcoming article to be submitted to a journal?
The NSC issues guidance for employers and cannabis use among workers; the NYPD tries a new strategy to combat police depressions and the AIHA partners with international organizations to help clear the (indoor) air. These were among the stop stories featured on ISHN.com this week.
After the tenth suicide among its ranks this year, the New York Police Department has decided to offer its officers free and confidential mental health services.
Police Commissioner James O'Neill and Mayor Bill de Blasio announced today that no-cost mental health counseling and prescription services would be available to officers through a program called Finest Care, which will be coordinated by New York-Presbyterian.
Unsafe shortcuts lead to worker deaths, how to liven up safety trainings and the feds limit opioid prescriptions for injured workers. These were among the top occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.
Worker injuries linked to opioid-related deaths and suicides, a Total Worker Health report card and heat-related illness takes a toll on construction workers. These were among the top stories featured on ISHN.com this week.
“Today we’re going to talk about something bigger than PPE, policies and practices. Something we’ve never discussed before. Can’t really fit it into a toolbox. It’s called life.
September 9-15th, 2018 was National Suicide Prevention week. Workplace suicide and mental health in general are often underrepresented in workplace health and safety discussions. However, globally, more than 300 million people suffer from depression, the leading cause of disability (WHO, 2017). In the US, the suicide mortality rate increased by 24% from 1999 to 2014, particularly among middle-age adults.
For decades, when a member of the International Association of Sheet Metal Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, or SMART, (formerly the Sheet Metal Workers’ International Association) had a personal problem, they would turn to a fellow member for help. For small issues, friends and mentors dispensed good advice just fine.
