Cyndi Loza

An increase in attempted suicides among Washoe County students concerns Washoe County educators.

The percentage of high school students who reported one or multiple suicide attempts in the past year increased from 8.6 percent in 2001 to 13.6 percent in 2007, according to the 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey taken by the Safe and Drug Free Schools department of the Washoe County School District. Nevada’s overall average was 13.8 percent.

The survey also reported increased percentages in:

• Middle school students who reported that they only sometimes, rarely or never feel safe and secure at school

• Students who probably or definitely won’t complete a post high school program.

• High school students who have had sexual intercourse before the age of 15.

On a positive note, there was a decrease in:

• Students who reported that they have ever had sexual intercourse.

• Students who reported, in their lifetime or in the past 30 days, using alcohol, tobacco and other drugs such as meth, cocaine and steroids.

“If there’s any one item that’s of concern (in the report), it’s the results on suicide,” school district spokesman Steve Mulvenon said. “These kids don’t just exist in the school world. They are members of the community, and they bring to school the problems that exist in the community.”

Nevada’s overall suicide rate is 19.2 per 100,000 as compared to the national rate of 10.9 per 100,000, making the state second in the nation only to Alaska in per capita suicides. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for Nevada youths ages

10 to 24, according to the Nevada Office of Suicide Prevention.

Intervention for substance abuse and suicide can begin at home, said Garry Rubinstein, coordinator of the substance abuse program at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Rubinstein said he advises friends and family to address their concerns with sentences that begin with “I feel,” “I think” or “I believe.”

“People may not like what we have to say, but that can’t take away from our ownership of thoughts,” Rubinstein said.

Dr. Melissa Piasecki, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, said parents should be concerned if their children show “any changes in their baseline behavior that would suggest they are in some type of distress.”

She said red flags would be any indications of wanting to die, such as a note or a verbal comment. Action should also be taken if a child shows a change in their usual eating habits, academic performance or sleeping patterns.

If someone shows serious symptoms, she said, they should call the Crisis Call Center at 784-8090. A change in their usual habits should be brought to the attention of a counselor.

Educators and counselors agreed that there is no definite answer as to why there was an increase or decrease in the survey results.

The results are based on a survey of 1,355 middle school students and 1,289 high school students in Washoe County.

“The one thing we’d like to know is what is working,” Rubinstein said. “I’d like to know that so we can keep doing it.”

Rubinstein said a number of reasons can affect the results reported. Students migh respond a certain way to a question if they think it is normal or accepted.

For example, the percentage of high school students that reported ever having sex decreased from 48 percent in 2001 to 44.3 percent in 2007. But high school students reporting that they have had sexual intercourse before the age of 15 has increased from 21.5 percent in 2001 to 23.1 percent in 2007.

“I know some students that haven’t had sex but say they did,” Rubinstein said. “People say things for different reasons.”

The percentage of high school students who reported using alcohol decreased from 82.5 percent in 2001 to 72.4 percent in 2007.

High school students who reported ever using drugs such as steroids, inhalants and cocaine decreased from previous results in 2005. For example, the percentage of students who reported ever using meth decreased from 10.2 percent in 2005 to 4.9 percent in 2007.

With the exception of steroids, Washoe County high school students on average reported using alcohol and any other drugs less than their state counterparts in 2007. The percentage of students that reported a lifetime abuse of steroids was 4.2 percent in Nevada and 4.4 percent in Washoe County.

Still, Piasecki said, some kind of definitive test, such as urine samples, would be a better indicator on whether substance abuse actually did decline among youth.

The percentage of middle school students who reported that they did not attend school in the past 30 days because they felt unsafe at school or to and from school nearly doubled in the past two years from 7.2 percent in 2005 to 14.1 percent in 2007. Nevada’s overall average was 10.7 percent.

“Certainly, you don’t want any students to feel unsafe,” Superintendent Paul Dugan said. “So that’s a concern.”

Dugan said gang activity has increased in the school district.

“It’s more subtle now but equally dangerous,” Dugan said.

The increased percentage of students who have no post-high school plans is also a concern for the school district. The percentage of students who reported they probably or definitely won’t complete a post-high school program increased from 9.5 percent in 2001 to 11 percent in 2007. Nevada’s overall average is 9.7 percent.

Mulvenon said that, though college is not for everyone, “it’s a rare occupation these days that would allow you to enter with just a high school diploma and nothing else.”

“It’s distressing that trend line seems to be going upward,” Mulvenon said. “One message that we’ve consistently given to students is the demands in the job place are such that every student is going to need some kind of post-high school training or education.”

Mulvenon said he could not speculate on why more students do not have post-graduation plans but knows career counselors will have to address the topic more aggressively.

Meri Shadley, president of Washoe County’s Safe and Sober Foundation, said a decrease in post-graduation plans and an increase suicide attempts may be related.

“A lot of the kids are fearful of the future and struggle with what’s going on at the moment,” said Shadley, citing some students may be struggling with money. “These kids are feeling a little more hopeless.”