By Staff reporter
The increase in reported cases of suicide following the announcement of grade twelve (G12) results has been blamed on the increased number of broken families.
Lubanda Luyando a Psychiatrist at Lusaka’s Chainama Hospital has disclosed to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT in an exclusive interview that growing up in brocken families is one of the major contributing factors to the increase in the number of suicidal cases.
Luyando revealed that about 90% of people with mental disorders, depression, alcohol & drug abuse or low blood pressure have been found to be at a higher risk of suicidal behaviour.
“I have seen practices that a lot of people who have problems with depression, drug addiction and alcohol abuse are the ones who in most cases commits suicide because when you go the the root of their problems, you find that they were once abused or come from brocken families”, Luyando added.
In another separate interview, Clinical Neural Psychologist Khaluso Masuwa told ZBT that suicidal cases have been on the rise because of lack of support systems in families, churches, communities and the nation at large.
Masuwa said this makes people feel vulnerable and end up thinking suicide is the only solution. He noted that the country currently only have a few hospitals offering dedicated mental facilities. There is need for the ministry of health and government in general to add mental health and the respective mental health facilities to the overall public health priorities for the benefit of the nation.
With increased social and economic pressures to do well on young people today, families and households have been advised to exercise restraint as they handle the performance of their family members reflected in their grade 12 results. Families need to realize that they are the last line of support system for their members.
According to the World Health organization – WHO, globally every year, almost 800 000 people die from suicide, and four in five of them are from low and middle-income countries with Zambia not being exception.
While suicide is believed to be the second leading cause of death mostly in youths, a number of cases have been recorded in the country especially after the recent announcement of the grade 12 results by Minister of education Douglas Siakalima.
