By Jeanna PearsonIn just three months reported cases of suicide have hit 28; half of the Pan American Health OrganizationPAHO country representative William Adu-Krow(PAHO) expected deaths from suicide every year, PAHO Country Representative Dr William Adu-Krow said in a recent interview with Kaieteur News.He stated that in the first two weeks of the year, Guyana had recorded ten cases of suicide. By the end of March there were 28 recorded deaths. “Which is out of the ordinary,Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping, because we expect a maximum of 60 deaths from suicide each year,” he said,Cheap Jerseys From China, highlighting that Guyana is only through the first quarter of the year and has recorded this.According to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) suicide is one of the leading causes of deaths in Guyana, with the country recording one incidence of suicide every 36 hours. At present, Guyana is the suicide capital of the world after having recorded 44.2 suicides per 100,000 people.Guyana’s ranking comes although there was an 8.5 per cent drop in the country’s suicide rate between 2000 and 2012, signifying that local efforts to fight suicide have simply not kept up with that of other countries.Also present, statistics show that about 15 per cent of Guyanese suffer from a mental disorder, while some three to five per cent suffer from severe chronic mental disorder. And more than 80 per cent of the people who committed suicide are Indo-Guyanese.“This definitely needs urgent attention because the figures are not for the first half of the year but only for the first quarter. This is disturbing,” a sombre Adu-Krow said, suggesting that there is need for more community work.“[The Public Health Ministry] needs to get on the ground because it’s the people that are affected. It is the family.Public Health Minister within ministry Karen CummingsSo they need to engage the religious community and also the people because someone who is contemplating to kill themselves would not want to walk into a health centre. No, they would talk to their family. It is the family that needs to be targeted,” he posited.According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Report,Wholesale China Jerseys Free Shpping, “Preventing suicide: a global imperative,NFL Jerseys China,” in some countries, like Guyana suicide is at its highest in vulnerable groups struggling with a lack of social support from families and friends.The report stated that suicidal behaviour often occurs as a response to personal psychological stress in a social context where sources of support are lacking. It added that isolation occurs when a person feels disconnected from his or her closest social circle: partners, family members and friends.While persons who share close personal and enduring relationships typically have a sense of purpose, security and connectedness.Adu-Krow further said that while there is evidence to suggest that suicide is decreasing in Guyana, statistics for 2016 reveal that it is on the rise. He noted that these figures do not include the amount of unreported cases.The Country Representative indicated that there are a lot of activities being pushed through the Public Health Ministry but the impact is not seen. He reiterated that although there is a need for a multi-sectoral approach there is evidence to suggest that more community work should be carried out.On the other hand, Adu-Krow stated that amount of money allocated for suicide prevention has not been made public. “There is money set aside for mental health and from that, money was allocated for suicide. How much that is? We don’t know,Pat Tillman Cardinals Throwback Jersey,” he noted.Minster within the Ministry of Public Health Dr Karen Cummings yesterday acknowledged the country representative sentiments, stating that the ministry has started works at the community level.“We are doing capacity building, which is an inter-sectoral approach with other ministries and community leaders,” she said, adding that they have adopted a ‘gate-keeper’ approach to deal with the people.She explained that community leaders,Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale, especially in the areas where there is a high incidence of suicide, are trained to counsel persons struggling with thoughts of suicide and exhibiting suicidal behaviour.She also indicated that the ministry is taking stringent steps to have laws on suicide revised. Presently, the law criminalizes suicide. She said further that there are four strategies that the ministry is implementing to tackle the scourge.Cummings stated that surveillance and research are high on the agenda while the other three strate