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Psychiatry and Behavioral Health

Suicide Mortality and Coronavirus Disease 2019—A Perfect Storm?

Educational Objective
To understand how secondary consequences of social distancing may increase the risk of suicide

1 Credit CME

JAMA Psychiatry

Published Online: April 10, 2020

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Article Information and Disclosures

Mark A. Reger, PhD^1,2;

Ian H. Stanley, MS^1,3;

Thomas E. Joiner, PhD³

Author Affiliations

¹VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle, Washington
²Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle
³Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee

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Suicide rates have been rising in the US over the last 2 decades. The latest data available (2018) show the highest age-adjusted suicide rate in the US since 1941.¹ It is within this context that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) struck the US. Concerning disease models have led to historic and unprecedented public health actions to curb the spread of the virus. Remarkable social distancing interventions have been implemented to fundamentally reduce human contact. While these steps are expected to reduce the rate of new infections, the potential for adverse outcomes on suicide risk is high. Actions could be taken to mitigate potential unintended consequences on suicide prevention efforts, which also represent a national public health priority.

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Article Information

Corresponding Author: Mark A. Reger, PhD, VA Puget Sound Health Care System, 1660 S Columbian Way (S-116), Seattle, WA 98108 (mark.reger@va.gov).

Published Online: April 10, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.1060

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs or University of Washington.

References

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AMA CME Accreditation Information

Credit Designation Statement: The American Medical Association designates this Journal-based CME activity activity for a maximum of 1.00  AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:

1.00 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;;
1.00 Self-Assessment points in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification program;
1.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;
1.00 Lifelong Learning points in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program; and
1.00 CME points in the American Board of Surgery’s (ABS) Continuing Certification program

It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.