A new study by the University of Cape Town (UCT) has found that violence and chronic stress are pushing adults to the brink independent of mental illness.
More than one in five adults attending public-sector primary healthcare clinics in Cape Town have attempted suicide at some point in their lives, a devastating new study has revealed, exposing the terrifying scale of South Africa's mental health crisis.
The pioneering research, led by the University of Cape Town, warns that the country’s exceptionally high suicide rate can no longer be viewed solely through the lens of clinical mental disorders. Instead, scientists have proved for the first time that the crushing weight of community violence and relentless everyday stress are driving people to the brink of despair entirely on their own, independent of whether a patient has a diagnosed psychiatric condition.
The findings come as a profound wake-up call for a nation that already suffers from one of the highest suicide rates on earth, with an estimated 22.3 deaths per 100,000 people translating into roughly 14,000 tragedies every year.
Published in the prestigious journal SSM – Mental Health, the study interviewed 613 adults across three public clinics in Cape Town, unearthing a reservoir of hidden psychological trauma. Alongside the 22.2 per cent of participants who admitted to a lifetime suicide attempt, a staggering 14 per cent reported experiencing active suicidal thoughts within just the 30 days prior to being interviewed.
