Tag: suicide

Nearly 4 Times as Many Cops Killed Themselves Than Were Shot and Killed in 2020

In 2020, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, 45 police officers were shot and killed in the line of duty — a decrease from the previous year. Absent from the database of fallen officers, however, are the 173 cops who ended their own watch. After rising for four consecutive years in a row, suicide among police dropped a little but is significantly higher than 2016.

As the number of officers killed in the line of duty decreased, the number of cops taking their own lives has increased. The website Blue H.E.L.P. (Honor. Educate. Lead. Prevent.) has been tracking these numbers for years in an attempt to prevent police officer suicides.

The mainstream media often portrays the unfortunate random killing of police officers as analogous to a larger “war on cops.” The reality is that there is a concerted public relations effort underway, on the part of law enforcement, with the intention of stemming the growing public calls for more oversight and accountability.

If law enforcement were genuine about wanting to save the lives of cops, they would begin by attempting to put focus on the growing number of police suicides, which dwarfs the number of cops fatally shot the line of duty. Cops are killing themselves at a rate nearly equal to 4 times the rate they are dying in the line of duty and this subject seems entirely taboo. Last year, it was nearly five times higher.

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Facing another retirement home lockdown, 90-year-old chooses medically assisted death

Across Canada, long-term care homes and retirement homes are seeing rising cases of COVID-19 and deaths yet again, a worrisome trend that is leading to more restrictions for the residents.

But these lockdowns are taking another toll among those who don’t get COVID-19.

Residents eat meals in their rooms, have activities and social gatherings cancelled, family visits curtailed or eliminated. Sometimes they are in isolation in their small rooms for days. These measures, aimed at saving lives, can sometimes be detrimental enough to the overall health of residents that they find themselves looking into other options.

Russell, described by her family as exceptionally social and spry, was one such person. Her family says she chose a medically-assisted death (MAID) after she declined so sharply during lockdown that she didn’t want to go through more isolation this winter.

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Coronavirus pandemic leading to depression and drinking, CDC says

Americans are struggling to cope with the coronavirus pandemic after months of harsh lockdowns, widespread disease and economic suffering that has fallen disproportionately on the young, minorities and those who are most vulnerable to financial shocks.

A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) finds the number of Americans reporting adverse mental health or behavioral changes — like drinking or drug use — on a perilous rise in recent months.

About a quarter of Americans reported symptoms of an anxiety disorder, three times higher than what a similar survey found a year ago. Those reporting depression has quadrupled, to nearly a quarter.

About 13 percent of Americans said they were drinking or using drugs more because of the stress of the pandemic. And almost 11 percent said they had seriously considered suicide in the last month, including more than a quarter of those between 18 and 24 years old.

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CDC Director Says There are More Suicides and Overdoses than COVID Deaths

Center for Disease Control Director Robert Redfield testified in a Buck Institute webinar that suicides and drug overdoses have surpassed the death rate for COVID-19. Redfield argued that lockdowns and lack of public schooling constituted a disproportionally negative impact on young peoples’ mental health.

“We’re seeing, sadly, far greater suicides now than we are deaths from COVID. We’re seeing far greater deaths from drug overdose that are above excess that we had as background than we are seeing the deaths from COVID,” he said.

Roughly 146,000 people have died from COVID or COVID-related causes in the U.S., according to CDC data.

The most recent publicized federal data records 48,000 deaths from suicide and at least 1.4 million attempts in 2018. In 2019, almost 71,000 people died from drug overdoses.

Where Redfield obtained his data is unknown, although a doctor at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, CA claimed the facility has “seen a year’s worth of suicide attempts in the last four weeks.” He did not say how many deaths occurred, or whether the statement was exaggerated for emphasis.

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‘The patient can shoot themselves I do not care’: VA watchdog exposes what preceded veteran’s suicide

The Veterans Administration inspector general has delivered a report detailing the facts that led to a veteran shooting and killing himself six days after seeking help in a D.C. VA facility.

The report, which was released Tuesday, outlined the poor communication and judgment of several mental health and emergency room staff. Worse, however, it showed a callous lack of concern by one of the ER’s attending doctors, the Washington Post reported.

“[The patient] can go shoot [themself]. I do not care,” the physician shouted, dismissing the vet’s symptoms. He then told police to eject the veteran, deciding that he was “malingering” and “ranting.”

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