Coronavirus: show concern for family and friends, experts urge as Hong Kong suicide index hits ‘crisis level’ in Covid-19 fifth wave
- It is the first time the index has hit crisis level since analysis was first conducted in March last year to track trends
- Experts call on community to show more care and concern for family members and friends, especially older people who may be feeling lonely because of restrictions
Experts called on the community to show more care and concern for family members and friends, especially older people, and urged the authorities to further relax some social-distancing measures to allow the elderly to enjoy more activities and feel connected with society.
Their calls came as the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at the University of Hong Kong found that its index over the seven-day period from March 11-18 had hit 4.03 deaths per day, rising through the “crisis level” in its rolling analysis.
It was also the first time the index had hit the crisis level since the analysis was first conducted in March last year to track trends based on suicide reports in the press.
Professor Paul Yip Siu-fai, the centre’s founding director, on Tuesday said the index had started to climb at the end of February from a low-risk level. He noted that over the seven days between March 22 and Monday, there were 21 news reports about people killing themselves, including eight who were aged 65 or above.