Investigation of suicide deaths in Turkey between 2015 and 2019

Background and objectives: Although suicide is the act of an individual, it is an important public health problem that affects the individual’s environment and also society. Approximately 800,000 people die by suicide each year. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the socio-demographic characteristics of fatal suicides in Turkey between 2015 and 2019. Materials and methods: This observational-analytical study was conducted by examining retrospective records in the period 2015–2019. The study was conducted by secondary analysis based on data from the Turkish Statistical Institute. Results: During the study period, the suicide rate (per 100,000) varied in the range 3.94–4.15 and the mean (standard deviation, SD) was 4.07 (0.09). The mean (SD) suicide rate was 6.14 (0.13) in males and 1.99 (0.18) in females; it was higher in males (z = 2.611; p = 0.008). Considering age groups, there was no difference between sex in terms of suicide rate among those aged