Studies of youth suicide prevention found lacking
Reviews of Australian research on youth suicide have found that high quality studies of effective prevention methods are lacking.
Studies for the National Health and Medical Research Council found deficiencies in national knowledge about the second most common cause of death among young people.
Research reviews on risk factors, who commits suicide, and prevention, found major knowledge gaps. Crisis intervention, phone counselling and suicide education are widely supported, without evidence showing they work.
One review says the lack of high quality Australian research on risk factors for youth suicide is striking. Data collection on which young people commit suicide is hampered by different State data collection methods.
There is a lack of studies among schools, migrant and indigenous youth.

ABC News Monday 22 March
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Lifeline questions rural youth suicide sexuality link
A youth suicide expert has questioned a Human Rights Commission report into rural life in Australia which suggests one-third of all suicides involve issues relating to sexual orientation.
Commissioner Chris Sidoti told ABC radio he felt one-third of all sucides in rural Australia involved youth struggling to come to terms with their sexuality.
But Dr Wayne Sanderson, who heads Lifeline's National Youth Suicide Prevention Program, says it is drawing a long bow to state a precise figure.
"We work with public health stats and they don't yet take account of that kind of issues, but I do take this seriously.
"I believe we get enough anecdotal evidence from practioners and counsellors who do indicate that socially isolated young people wrestling with sexual identity do in some cases take their ownlives," Dr Sanderson said.

URL Lifeline http//www.lifeline.org.au/

Lifeline was founded by the Reverend Alan Walker at Methodist Central Mission in Sydney.
ABC News: Saturday 20 March
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