Just Ask: Unconventional Methods Of Suicide Prevention

Published: Aug. 27, 2019, 1:50 p.m.

On average five times an hour, an American dies by suicide--and many, many more--more than a million adults each year--try to take their own lives, and fail. It seems epidemic. But an economist at the National Institute of Mental Health, Michael Schoenbaum, says some straightforward steps would make a difference. If emergency rooms just asked every patient whether they’re thinking of suicide, he says--we’d find twice as many people as we do now. And we would not plant the idea.