Nowon-gu, Suicide Rate Drops for 2 Consecutive Years... The Secret?

Expanding Psychological Counseling Staff Activities and Intensifying Suicide Prevention Amid COVID Blue... 2019 Seoul District Suicide Rate Rankings: Nowon-gu Drops from 8th to 11th... 3 Billion Won Invested in Suicide Prevention Since 2010, District Budget Increased by 100 Million Won This Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) announced on the 4th that its suicide rate has been declining for two consecutive years recently.

According to the suicide statistics released by Statistics Korea on the 22nd of last month, the number of suicides in Nowon-gu in 2020 was 115, a decrease of 4 from 119 in 2019.

The suicide rate per 100,000 population was 25.4 in 2018, when the 7th local government term began, then dropped to 23.8 in 2019, and further fell to around 22 in 2020.

This trend is also well reflected in the data recently published by the Seoul Suicide Prevention Center. The average suicide rate change in Nowon-gu over five years from 2015 to 2019 was -2.9%, which is lower than the national average suicide rate change of 0.7% and the Seoul average of -1.6%.

This is analyzed as the result of the effectiveness of various suicide prevention projects that the district has been promoting.

To reduce the suicide rate, the district established the first dedicated suicide prevention team among Seoul’s autonomous districts in October 2010 and was the first to enact a suicide prevention ordinance among Seoul districts. As a result of continuous efforts, the suicide rate, which ranked 8th among Seoul districts in 2017, dropped to 11th in 2019.

Nowon-gu’s suicide prevention projects are distinctive compared to other districts. While most districts operate mental health welfare centers, Nowon-gu has a dedicated team within the public health center acting as a control tower.

Additionally, the district involved the community service centers closest to residents in suicide prevention projects. The community center heads promote suicide prevention projects tailored to local characteristics and share and encourage achievements annually through evaluations of the ‘Community Center Suicide Prevention Projects.’

Along with this, a neighbor love volunteer group, a resident participation organization for suicide prevention, was formed, and community leaders were assigned suicide prevention duties.

Furthermore, to systematically manage residents at risk of suicide detected early, the district operates 57 professional psychological counselors trained as suicide prevention activists. They are also navigating the COVID-19 situation wisely. To expand psychological counseling activities for at-risk groups, an additional budget of 100 million KRW was allocated to increase counselor operating hours to twice a week. The counselors provide telephone companionship services as well as in-person counseling for vulnerable groups.

The district is also expanding channels to meet various target groups. For seniors and disabled individuals who find it difficult to visit the public health center, a mobile health bus operates to provide on-site health checkups and mental health assessments. Youth and people in their 20s and 30s communicate through the YouTube channel (Nowon Life Respect TV) and Facebook.

Last month, to efficiently support vulnerable groups living in permanent rental housing, the district signed an MOU with the Seoul branch of the Housing Management Corporation and four rental apartment management offices.

The district has invested a total of 3 billion KRW, including more than 200 million KRW annually from its own budget separate from Seoul city funds, to continuously reduce the suicide rate. This year, the budget was increased by 100 million KRW to a total of 300 million KRW. The plan is to reduce the annual number of suicides to fewer than 100 by 2022 through continuous investment.

District Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, “While promoting suicide prevention projects, I realized how difficult it is to lower the suicide rate, but seeing the rate gradually decrease through steady investment and attention gives me a sense of fulfillment and mission. We will further strengthen management and emotional support for vulnerable groups such as isolated seniors due to reinforced social distancing and residents suffering from COVID-19 depression.”