More than 500 people commit suicide each year in recent years in our country, according to official data, leaving behind at least 5000 mourners annually. In reality suicides are far more than recorded, while there is no data at all on non-lethal attempts, which are estimated to be 15-20 times more than recorded suicides.

The data is given by Suicide Observatory and the research recording network of the “KLIMAKA” Day Center for Suicide Preventionmember of the International Association for Suicide Prevention, on the occasion of September 10, World Suicide Prevention Day.

Data on suicides

  • The 24-hour suicide hotline 1018 received 20,857 calls in 2022
  • In 2020, 464 people committed suicide
  • Each suicide is associated with at least 22 admissions to emergency departments and 5 hospitalizations
  • At least 25% of suicides go unreported
  • Non-fatal attempts are 15-20 times more than recorded suicides
  • The number of suicides in the years 2021-2022 and 2023 shows a steady upward trend according to the figures of the Suicide Observatory – more than 1500 people have killed themselves in this time period
  • 91 people have killed themselves in the last decade in hospitals and health units
  • 67 suicides have taken place in prisons and detention centers since 2015
  • Since 2015, 76 members of the security forces and 49 members of the armed forces or conscripts have committed suicide.
  • During the same period, 52 suicides have taken place on public transport
  • Suicide is not a fatal event

Its main message World Suicide Prevention Day is that suicide is preventable. Suicide is not a fatal event. 95% of suicides could have been prevented, report experts from “KLIMAKA”. They also highlight the responsibility of all of us to help save lives that are at risk. “It is time to open our eyes to an issue that we can no longer ignore“, say five well-known actors (Dora Makrygianni, Sofia Manolakou, Nikos Orfanos, Spyros Poulis and Thanasis Tsaltabasis), who participate in the information and awareness campaign for suicide prevention.

With phrases like, “the darkness was chasing me, I didn’t know how to escape, the pain was suffocating, you hit rock bottom and you think you’re going to escape, , I thought I had no choice, the loss of hope was worse than the pain I felt” , give the impression of hopelessness and impasse felt by people who have lost hope and are considering ending their lives. But they end with the optimistic message that “darkness will not win. There is hope. By speaking out we can save lives. Suicide prevention concerns us all.”

Information and awareness actions

In the context of World Suicide Prevention Day, “KLIMAKA” will carry out actions to inform and raise public awareness in Attica, Patras, Corfu, Naxos, Amorgos, Santorini, Kastelorizo ​​and Symi. In Athens, today at 1:00 p.m. (Eumolpidon 30-32, Kerameikos) and on Sunday, September 10, at 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., in Kotzia square, an open information event will be held, with the participation of the string quartet L’ Anima .

The Day Center for Suicide Prevention, within which the 24-hour Suicide Intervention Line – 1018 and the Suicide Observatory operate, is the only Mental Health Unit in the country which, for more than 16 years, has been developing specialized services, research and educational work in the fields of suicide and self-destructive behaviors. The Unit operates under the supervision and funding of the Ministry of Health and is the national representative body in the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP).