Preventing suicide in young people: what is known and what is needed

In the UK the suicide rate for male adolescents has nearly doubled since 1975. With a similar increase reported from other countries it is not surprising that preventing suicide in young people has become a priority for many health professionals and policy makers. Unfortunately despite advances in our understanding of suicide in young people there are still deficiencies and inconsistencies in our knowledge. There are also problems in transforming our knowledge of suicide and suicidal behaviour in young people and our understanding of theoretically possible approaches to prevention into effective suicide prevention strategies. To increase the chance of preventing suicide in young people we need to be aware of the problems of putting theory into practice and evaluate all interventions that are undertaken to determine their appropriateness and effectiveness.