Suicide among reindeer herding Sámi in Sweden, 1961–2017

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Lars Jacobsson, Jon Petter A. Stoor, Anders Eriksson
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2020
• Subjects: sami; saami; indigenous; mental health; arctic; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic; Circumpolar Health; International Journal of Circumpolar Health; Norrbotten
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2020.1754085; https://doaj.org/article/5b490c2ceb184520a3e1b4a730e06c75

This study analyses suicides amongst reindeer herding Sámi in Sweden using information from the database of the National Board of Forensic Medicine. Suicides were identified using registers (39 suicides from 1961–2000) and key informants (11 suicides from 2001–2017). A great majority of cases were males (43 males, 7 females), and 50% occurred in the northernmost region. The mean age was 37.4 years with a peak in the group 20–29 years of age. Shooting was the most common (56%) method, followed by hanging. Blood alcohol concentration measures available from 1993 were above 0.2 g/l in 76% of the cases. There was a maximum incidence of suicides between 1981 and 1990. An accumulation of suicides in the months of May (N = 8) and November (N = 7) was seen. The annual suicide rate was estimated to be between 17.5 and 43.9 per 100 000 population. There was a clear gradient in suicide incidence with the highest being in the southernmost region (Jämtland/Härjedalen) and the lowest in the northernmost county (Norrbotten). For strengthened suicide prevention in this group, future research should address sex differences, the role of alcohol use and the general conditions for reindeer herding.