A New Study Reveals Suicide-Related Ambulance Calls Doubled During COVID

A recent study reveals suicide-related ambulance presentation rose by more than 50% in Australia during the first year of the pandemic.

Between March 2020 and March 2021, there was a significant and continuous increase in ambos attending suicide attempts, suicidal ideation and self-harm compared to before the pandemic.

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According to The Guardian, the study's co-author Associate Professor Daniel Lin, a senior lecturer of psychiatry and mental health at the University of New South Wales, said the increase in suicide-related ambulance callouts during this period was sustained even after lockdown restrictions were eased.

“What we can conclude is that the need to call the ambulance [for such issues] definitely increased after the pandemic began,” he said.

Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, director of the Monash Alfred Psychiatry research centre, who was not involved in the study, said that the finding is not surprising.

“This data bears out what a lot of clinicians have been talking about, seeing, and predicting,” Kulkarni said.

The new study “suggests that people are seeking help for mental health issues rather than ‘giving up’ and completing suicide”, she said, adding, “It means that ambulance officers are attending to more mental health issues overall.”

Kulkarni said that Covid has shone a light on mental health, highlighting that “Australia needs more mental health services for all age groups to help to meet the needs for those who do have mental ill health.”

If you or anyone you know needs help, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Meanwhile, Covid cases and hospitalisations across Australia and New Zealand look like this:

Western Australia

New cases: 7,720
Covid-related deaths: 8
Hospital and ICU admissions: 283 / 15

Northern Territory

New cases: 254
Covid-related deaths: 0
Hospital and ICU admissions: 14 / 0

Australian Capital Territory

New cases: 821
Covid-related deaths: 1
Hospital and ICU admissions: 89 / 0

Queensland

New cases: 4,257
Covid-related deaths: 15
Hospital and ICU admissions: 312 / 12

New South Wales

New cases: 7,825
Covid-related deaths: 10
Hospital and ICU admissions: 1,283 / 38

Victoria

New cases: 9,181
Covid-related deaths: 12
Hospital and ICU admissions: 514 / 24

South Australia

New cases: 2,995
Covid-related deaths: 0
Hospital and ICU admissions: 237 / 5

Tasmania

New cases: 667
Covid-related deaths: 0
Hospital and ICU admissions: 38 / 0

New Zealand

New cases: 7,050
Covid-related deaths: 24
Hospital and ICU admissions:361 / 14

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