year in which complete statistics are currently available, the suicide rate among the elderly had risen to 19.1 for every 100,000 individuals in the over-65 population, significantly above the overall rate of 11.1 per 100,000 in all age groups. Among men 65 and over, the rate had grown to an alarming 38.4 per 100,000, making suicide an important cause of death within this population group. Although senior citizens make up a small percentage of the whole population (13 percent), they account for 20 percent of all suicides. Of these elderly suicides, 81 percent are men. These figures include only deaths directly attributable to suicide; other forms of death can sometimes also be seen as less overt acts of self-destruction, such as situations in which a patient ignored a physician's treatment plan.
Experts theorize on the factors responsible for these trends. First, the population as a whole is aging, and a greater proportion of the population is living well past 65. The largest relative increase in suicide rates between 1980 and 1992 occurred among men ages 80 to 84, as this population segment has expanded as a whole. While significant medical advances have allowed increasing numbers of individuals to live longer lives, the quality of those lives is not always better. Physicians can prolong the physical lives of many older patients without being able to improve other elements.
Second, suicide has become an increasingly acceptable choice within society. Advocates of euthanasia and assisted suicide, most notably Dr. Jack Kevorkian, have increased the public's awareness of the "right to die" movement and heightened social sensitivity to suicide as a choice to end the suffering engendered by terminal illness and other prolonged diseases. Although suicide remains a controversial decision even in the cases of extreme suffering, it has become a choice more sanctioned by mainstream society.
Third, social work professionals h...