Suicide Among the Elderly

Patrick Abore 
Director & Founder, Center for Elderly Suicide Prevention & Grief Related Services, 
San Francisco 

Patrick Abore helped start the 24-hour Friendship Line for the Elderly, a nationwide toll-free number (800-971-0016). This number now receives 2,000 incoming calls per month, and those who staff the service place 3,000 outgoing calls per month. The impetus for creating this service was research that showed very few older people called suicide prevention lines, even though older people have a higher rate of suicide than the rest of the population. Mr. Abore discusses the risk factors for suicide in later life. He also outlines the challenges in assessing suicidal tendencies in older people. 

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Recorded: March 16, 2012