Suicide

Overview

Suicide is a growing public health concern throughout the United States.¹ It can have a lasting, harmful impact on individuals, families, and communities. In 2017, suicide was responsible for the deaths of more than 47,000 individuals.¹
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that in 2017, over 10.6 million Americans thought seriously about committing suicide, 3.2 million actually had a plan in place, and 1.4 million attempted suicide.¹ Individuals that have experienced violence including bullying and child abuse are at higher risk for suicide.¹ Evidence-based and community-based interventions that focus on protective factors like family and community support can help reduce the risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior.¹ ² 
Due to the high cost to human life and the harmful impact on the victim’s family and loved ones, reducing suicide rates in our county is one of our top priorities. 
If you or a loved one is contemplating suicide, help is available. Contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

Our Vital Signs

We use California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Center for Health Statistics and Informatics data to track the rate of suicide in our county. We also use vital statistics data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 
We have identified the following statistics about suicide in our county: 
  • Rates have varied from around 10 suicides per 100,000 residents to 11 per 100,000 residents for San Bernardino County. This compares with 10 to 10.5 per 100,000 for the State of California.
  • No clear upward or downward trend is indicated by the data for California or the County of San Bernardino, however rates increased from  2014 to 2016.
  • At the national level, suicides have increased yearly, beginning at 12.08 per 100,000 residents in 2010 and ending at 13.41 in 2016.
The chart below shows the overall suicide rates for San Bernardino County, the State of California, and the United States.
Data Sources: 
  • State and County Numerator: California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Center for Health Statistics and Informatics. California Death Statistical Master File
  • State and County Denominator: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2010-2018 1-Year Summary File Estimates, Tables B01001, B01001H, B01001I, B07003, B01002, B01002H, B01002I. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/acs-1year.html
  • National Numerator and Denominator: NCHS Vital Statistics System for numbers of deaths. Bureau of Census for population estimates. Retrieved from https://webappa.cdc.gov/cgi-bin/broker.exe
References:
1. Preventing Suicide |Violence Prevention|Injury Center|CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/suicide/fastfact.html. Published September 5, 2019. Accessed February 27, 2020.
2. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preventing Suicide: A Technical Package Of Policies, Programs, And Practices.. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2017.



Updated 03/02/2020