A case-control study of psychological distress in survivors of farmers' suicides in Wardha District in central India

Psychosocial aspects of suicide in largest industry of farmers in Vidarbha Region of Maharashtra

India consists of 16% of the world's population, but sustains only 2.4% of land resources. The agriculture sector is the only livelihood to two-third of its population, which gives employment to 57% of the workforce and is a raw material source to a large number of industries. Farmer suicides account for approximately 10% of all suicides in India. The national suicide rate is 10.6/lac, whereas in Maharashtra it is 14.2/lac, in Andhra Pradesh 12.1/lac, in Telangana 27.7/lac, and in Chhattisgarh 27.7/lac. The National Crime Records Bureau data from 1995 to 2006 show that 200,000 farmers had committed suicide, with an average rate of 16,000/year. Every 7^th suicide in the country is a farmers' suicide. The first state where suicides were reported was Maharashtra with particularly in the Vidarbha region. In Maharashtra, farmers' suicide rate is 60% higher than the general suicide rate. Every 5^th farmers' suicide committed in the country had occurred in Maharashtra, Vidarbha being a particularly sensitive region but also in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, and Karnataka. In a country of 70 million farmers, 10 in every 100,000 farmers commit suicide. Many inquiry commissions were formed and recommendations were implemented, especially in Punjab. The problem of suicide is not only reported in India but also reported in different parts of the world like England and Wales. We adopted the psychological autopsy approach to offer some insight into the reason why these individuals resorted to such a drastic step.

Suicidal Ideation and Pesticide Exposure in Rural Communities of Central India

Background  This study aims to evaluate association between suicidal ideation and pesticide exposure in rural communities of Wardha district of Central rural India compared with villagers who are not exposed to it. Method  It was a cross-sectional study done in rural community of Wardha district in Central India. About 100 farmers who were exposed to pesticides and 100 controls who were not exposed to pesticides were included. A Semistructured proforma to record sociodemographic variables and Indian version of the Self Reporting Questionnaire-20 was used. Results  Of these 200 subjects, data were available for 85 farmers in study group and 74 in control group. In the farmers group, 31% of farmers had suicidal ideas, while 8% of controls felt like ending their life. Conclusion  Measures must be taken to store pesticides at a safer place thus reducing long-term exposure. Organic farming is a better choice to avoid suicidal ideas.

The Burden of Farmer Suicide on Surviving Family Members: A Qualitative Study

The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to better understand the burden of farmer suicide on surviving family members. Themes included: (1) family members expressed guilt; (2) family members experienced symptoms of psychological distress; (3) family members felt attached to the land and chose to remain on the farm; (4) short-term coping mechanisms included family, friends and faith; (5) long-term coping mechanisms included acts of honoring their loved one; (6) there was a lack of awareness of community support resources following the suicide.

Psychosocial, psychiatric and work-related risk factors associated with suicide in Ireland: optimised methodological approach of a case-control psychological autopsy study

BACKGROUND

Suicide has profound effects on families and communities, but is a statistically rare event. Psychological autopsies using a case-control design allow researchers to examine risk factors for suicide, using a variety of sources to detail the psychological and social characteristics of decedents and to compare them to controls. The Suicide Support and Information System Case Control study (SSIS-ACE) aimed to compare psychosocial, psychiatric and work-related risk factors across three groups of subjects: suicide decedents, patients presenting to hospital with a high-risk self-harm episode, and general practice controls.

METHODS

The study design includes two inter-related studies; one main case-control study: comparing suicide cases to general practice (GP) controls, and one comparative study: comparing suicide cases to patients presenting with high-risk self-harm. Consecutive cases of suicide and probable suicide are identified through coroners' registration of deaths in the defined region (Cork City and County, Ireland) and are frequency-matched for age group and gender with GP patient controls recruited from the same GP practice as the deceased. Data sources for suicide cases include coroners' records, interviews with health care professionals and proxy informants; data sources for GP controls and for high-risk self-harm controls include interviews with control, with proxy informants and with health care professionals. Interviews are semi-structured and consist of quantitative and qualitative parts. The quantitative parts include a range of validated questionnaires addressing psychiatric, psychosocial and occupational factors. The study adopts several methodological innovations, including accessing multiple data sources for suicide cases and controls simultaneously, recruiting proxy informants to examine consistency across sources.

CONCLUSIONS

The study allows for the investigation of consistency across different data sources and contributes to the methodological advancement of psychological autopsy research. The study will also inform clinical and public health practice. The comparison between suicide cases and controls will allow investigation of risk and protective factors for suicide more generally, while the comparison with high-risk self-harm patients will help to identify the factors associated specifically with a fatal outcome to a self-harm episode. A further enhancement is the particular focus on specific work-related risk factors for suicide.

Depression, Suicidal Ideation, and Resilience among Rural Farmers in a Drought-Affected Area of Trichy District, Tamil Nadu

Background:

Changes in climatic conditions and other factors including trade and commerce have influenced agriculture worldwide. These factors have created a crisis among farmers.

Objectives:

The objective of this study was to find out the prevalence of depression and suicidal ideation, to measure the resilience, and to find out the factors that influence depression and resilience among farmers.

Materials and Methods:

A community-based cross-sectional analytical study was performed among farmers residing in a drought-affected area of Tiruchirappalli district of Tamil Nadu. The sample size was 191 and cluster sampling was used to select the participants. Structured, pretested questionnaires were used to find the prevalence of depression, suicidal ideation, and resilience among farmers. Pearson Correlation, Student's t-test, analysis of variance, and Pearson Chi-square test were used to identify the factors influencing depression and resilience.

Results:

A total of 194 farmers participated in the study. The mean age of the farmers was 46.68 ± 12.6 years, majority 64% were males and 89% were literates. Among the participants, 97.4% had some form of depression, and 67% had severe depression. About 60% of the farmers had suicidal ideation. Male farmers, farmers with few years of farming experience, and severe reduction in yield had a higher level of depression. Suicidal ideation was influenced by gender, small-scale farming, fewer years of experience in farming, and the impact of drought on yield. The mean resilience score was 49.4 ± 10. Gender and years of experience in farming had a significant association with resilience.

Conclusion:

High prevalence of depression and suicidal ideation and low level of resilience has been observed among the farmers. Interventions need to be provided for marginal and small-scale farmers, male farmers in the affected area to reduce the impact of drought in these farmers.

Clinical and psychological consequences for the families of suicide victim

A lot of attention is paid to people in suicidal crisis, while the problems of helping the relatives of the suicide victim are studied less extensively. To offer expert support to the family it is necessary to understand the aims of psychological work. The article presents analysis of protective factors and risk factors that may affect the intensity of the emotional state after the loss. Characteristics of children’s experience of relative’s suicide are described. In contrast to the experience of natural death, relatives of a suicide experience more feelings of guilt and social stigmatization that prevents them from getting informal support. Relatives of a suicide are at risk of developing depression, symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, physical illness, drug addiction and suicidal behavior. Literature data shows the need to develop a program of prevention that should be based on the relationship between the survivor and the person who committed suicide, to consider the stage of grief and coping skills he/she possesses.