Colorado, which typically has one of the highest suicide rates in the nation, had a record 940 deaths by suicide last year, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

A more accurate measure -- the number of deaths by suicide per 100,000 residents — didn't set a record, but is still alarming enough to public health officials. Last year, there were 18.4 suicides per 100,000 people, compared with 18.9 per 100,000 in 1988.

“It’s a 20-year high. It’s unfortunate,” said Jarrod Hindman, program manager for the state health department’s Office of Suicide Prevention. “The 2009 data serve as a reminder that suicide prevention must be a priority public health issue in Colorado.”

Hindman said there also was a significant increase in suicide deaths among those ages 25 to 44 and 85 and older last year.

The high suicide rate statewide is mirrored in El Paso County, which, by one count, had 172 suicide deaths last year for a a rate of 28 deaths by suicide per 100,000 residents. The number does not include suicides that occurred on military bases.

Nor do the statistics include suicide attempts -- and Janet Karnes, director of Suicide Prevention Partnership of the Pikes Peak Region, said the numbers would be “staggering” if they were factored in.

“Nationally, they estimate that 15 to 20 attempts occur for every single completion,” Karnes said. “But no one tracks attempts.”

Nor are there verified reasons for the high suicide rates that plague Colorado and most of the Rocky Mountain West. Hindman said there are educated theories, such as the poor economy and Colorado's paucity of mental health services and hospital beds for mental health crises. But he and Karnes agree that a study would be the best way to get at the "whys," and one doesn't seem imminent.

“Until some really good study is conducted, I don’t think we’ll know. I keep asking everyone, ‘Why aren’t we doing a study?’ but who’s going to put time and money into it?” Karnes said.

Hindman said that although Colorado suffers from a lack of adequate funding for mental health services and hospital beds for mental health crises, decisionmakers have made suicide prevention a priority and continue to fund his office even as other state programs are being cut.

“We’re one of only six states with an office of suicide prevention,” said Hindman, whose office received $285,000 in state funding for the year beginning July 1.

His office has been able to raise awareness about suicide, Hindman said, but it’s difficult to clear two big hurdles that surround mental health issues: perception and treatment.

“The stigma is pretty powerful. Mental illness is very treatable, but people don’t access the services,” he said. “And even if you have insurance, you might have to wait six weeks for treatment when you need help, like, today.”

Sobering statistics

The rate of suicide deaths per 100,000 residents:

Colorado
2007: 16.3
2008 15.8
2009: 18.4

El Paso County*
2007: 18
2008: 23
2009: 28
 

*As reported by Suicide Prevention Partnership of the Pikes Peak Region, based on numbers from the El Paso County coroner’s office. The state uses a different measure, based on where the victim lived, not where the death occurred, and reported a rate of 22.2 for El Paso county in 2009 and 17.4 in 2008.