Suicide rate among disabled people is twice that of the total... “Don’t miss the signs of abuse and feelings”

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Seong Seong-ho = The death rate due to intentional self-harm among disabled people is twice that of the entire population, making it necessary to watch carefully for signs of abuse or suicide in peacetime.

According to the '2025 Disability Statistics Yearbook' of the Korea Institute for the Development of Persons with Disabilities on the 7th, the crude death rate due to intentional self-harm (suicide) of disabled people in 2023 (an indicator expressed in units of 100,000 as the number of annual suicide deaths divided by the population as of July 1 of that year) was 56.7. It is 2.1 times the suicide death rate of the entire population (27.3 people).

Disabled people experience complex suicide risk factors such as depression, post-traumatic stress, and social isolation, but they remain in a blind spot due to the lack of a system to manage suicide risk.

Accordingly, the Central Agency for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, a specialized organization responding to abuse of the disabled, is carrying out the Ministry of Health and Welfare's public-private cooperation suicide prevention project in 2026 and is operating a 'project to identify high-risk groups for suicide among disabled victims of abuse and link customized suicide prevention services by disability type'.

Through this project, the Central Disabled Persons' Rights Protection Agency is preventing suicide among the disabled by developing tools that can detect early signs of suicide risk among the disabled who have suffered abuse.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Central Disabled Persons' Rights Protection Agency, abuse can be checked by looking at whether a person suddenly becomes very angry or lacks self-confidence, or whether the person loses or gains weight rapidly compared to usual.

In the case of suicide risk, it can be determined by whether a person hurts themselves differently than usual or has unexplained wounds on their body, whether they have ever said they want to die or talked about death, and whether they do not take care of themselves, such as eating or washing, unlike usual.

If there is a disabled person around you who is suffering from abuse, you can report it to ☎1644-8295 or ☎112, and if there is a disabled person at risk of suicide, you can get help by calling ☎109.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Central Disability Rights Protection Agency will participate in the 2026 Family Healing Workshop for the Developmentally Disabled and operate a promotional booth under the theme of 'Safe daily life that protects me.'

This workshop was attended by 200 to 250 people, including people with developmental disabilities and their families. Based on the motto, 'Do not miss the signs of abuse or the signs of the heart,' it provides information on mental health, such as how to detect suspected signs of abuse of the disabled and changes in the emotions and behavior of the disabled.