A total of 192 suicide deaths have been recorded in Otago and Southland in the last four years, according to figures released yesterday by chief coroner Judge Neil MacLean.
The provisional suicide statistics show that for the Southern region, the lowest deaths in those four years occurred in 2007-08 when 37 were recorded, with the highest (60) in the 2009-10 financial year.
Nationally, over the four years 2170 people died, between 531 and 558 a year.
The death rate was calculated at between 12.2% per 100,000 population in 2007-08, rising to 12.65% last financial year.
Across the country, more employed people killed themselves (847) over the four years than unemployed (598), with the next highest number of deaths involving those who were retired (219). Twenty-one prison deaths were also found to be suicides over the period.
Judge MacLean said the statistics clearly showed that "what we have done in the past is not bringing the toll down, so we must look for new solutions".
The only positive from this year's figures was a marked dip in the number of suicides in Christchurch since February's devastating earthquake.
Judge McLean said this phenomenon had been noted elsewhere in the world after national disasters, which could create a sense of social cohesion.
"There seems to be almost a therapeutic benefit out of a major disaster that (lonely and depressed) people are, as it were, beginning to feel involved: someone who was never associated with his neighbours, who never really related to anyone, suddenly feels useful by helping the old lady down the road or just doing helpful things.
"It could give a sense of feeling worthwhile and useful."
However, Christchurch's figures were already starting to climb back up to "the norm".
The data shows far more males committed suicide than females in the past year, with 19.36 male suicide deaths per 100,000 people, compared with 6.2 female suicides per 100,000.
The highest rate was for males aged 20-24, with 31.73 suicide deaths per 100,000.
Risk factors most commonly associated with suicide were known mental health history, previous threats or attempts of self-harm and drug or alcohol abuse.
Prime Minister John Key said the Government was "deeply concerned" by the country's suicide rate. Should the Government be re-elected in November it would lead a full review on the youth suicide rate, which was the highest, per capita, in the developed world for girls and the third-highest for boys.
"We know that countries like Australia are doing better than us and we owe it to our young people to do a better job by them.
"I wouldn't want to second guess what all those policies will look like, but in a similar situation we undertook a review around P and then rolled out a very extensive and quite comprehensive package of initiatives. That would be my aim when it comes to youth suicide."
The Southern District Health Board this month approved a suicide prevention action plan, becoming one of seven boards across the country to take such action.
In the report to the board prepared by Public Health South, suicide prevention co-ordinator Jodie Black said in the four years to 2007 the Southern death rate was higher than the national average at 13.4 deaths per 100,000 a year.
The plan has five goals involving improving the care of people experiencing mental disorders associated with suicidal behaviour, reducing access to means of suicide, promotion of safe reporting and portrayal of suicidal behaviour by the media, supporting those affected by suicide, and promoting mental health and wellbeing.
Ms Black said there were many agencies across the sector who had a role in suicide prevention and the strategy was designed to address any gaps in a strategic way.
She hoped the introduction of a co-ordinated approach would mean individual agencies would not feel the responsibility was all falling on their shoulders.
Addressing the issue of society's unwillingness to talk about suicide openly, Ms Black said there was still much stigma around the issue for friends and family of those who died.
They needed to be able to have safe ways of talking about it and there was also a need to discuss stories of hope and the support and options available to help people.
One of those on the suicide prevention advisory group which contributed to the plan Dr Richard Egan, who has previously worked as a mental health promoter, said he believed work done in the past 10 or so years had a positive impact on suicide rates.
It was what was known as the "prevention paradox" as it was impossible to tell how many suicides had been prevented.
There might still be about 500 deaths a year which was a "total tragedy", but without any work being done in the area that rate could have been 600 to 800, he said.
Suicide was a societal issue and there was increasing attention being paid to the role of inequalities in that.
