Suicide in the elderly: staying in control

Suicide remains one of the major causes of death among the fastest growing segment of the US population--the elderly aged 65 and over. Individuals 65 and over comprised 12.4% of the population in 1988, but accounted for 20.9% of all reported suicides (McIntosh, 1992). The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the meaning of suicide to the elderly and how suicide becomes an alternative for them. Results indicate that elderly subjects gave considerable thought to the end of their lives--including planning for death. For them, suicide was frequently viewed as a way of maintaining control over the dying process. In this study, the elderly described their views on who makes the decision about when death will occur, when suicide is acceptable, and how they would like others to respond to their suicidal ideation. Risk factors and causes of suicide in the elderly emerged from the data.