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Survey shows 1.53 million people in Taiwan suffer from emotional problems

Data show though the suicide death rate in Taiwan has generally decreased since 2007, it has slightly risen in the past three years, especially among young people.

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Modern people often suffer from emotional problems. (Source: Pexel)

Modern people often suffer from emotional problems. (Source: Pexel)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The latest survey shows that in Taiwan, there are about 1.53 million people suffering from emotional problems and among them, more than 40 percent have had a suicidal idea, said Lee Ming-been (李明濱), chief leader at Taiwan Suicide Prevention Center (TSPC), Sunday.

The TSPC conducted a telephone survey this year with 2,098 people aged over 15 in the country and discovered that 6.7 percent of people had had a suicidal idea in the past year, which is the lowest figure over the last few years.

However, Lee said that through the 5-item Brief Symptom Rating Scale (BSRS-5), a list of questions commonly used in Taiwan for examining individual's mental health, they estimated that roughly 1.53 million people are having emotional problems, and among them, more than 40 percent “have seriously thought about committing suicide."

Lee said in a speech that though the suicide death rate in Taiwan had generally decreased since 2007, it had slightly risen in the past three years.

Data from the TSPC showed that there were 3,765 suicide deaths in Taiwan in 2016, which is slightly higher than 2015, and among those who took their own lives, men outnumbered women.

The data also showed that in the past four years, the crude death rate from suicide among people aged from 15 to 24 had continued to rise, increasing from 5.2 per 100,000 population in 2011 to 6.8 in 2016, with only the rate in 2012 slightly lower than that in 2011.

The survey also revealed that only 17.3 percent of people who had had a suicidal idea would seek help, usually from close family members or friends and then professional counseling services. However, only half of the interviewees said they would be willing to talk people out of their suicidal ideas, but more than 30 percent said they would choose to change the topic.

Lee said that as the theme of this year’s World Suicide Prevention Day campaign goes, “Take a minute, change a life (關鍵一刻,扭轉一生)”, people should all lend a helping hand to those in need, and even a warm greeting may sometimes help change a person’s life.