AIHW and Interim National Commissioner reports

Today, 29 September 2021, the Preliminary Interim Report from the Interim National Commissioner for Defence and Veteran Suicide Prevention was tabled by government and publicly released. This coincided with the release of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) report: Serving and ex-serving ADF members who have served since 1985: suicide monitoring 2001 to 2019 report.

This is the fourth annual update to this report which has been commissioned by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to assist in our understanding of the complex issue of veteran suicide.

The death by suicide of any Australian is a tragedy — for their family, their friends, their colleagues, their local community and for the nation.

There is no simple or single solution to suicide.

DVA remains committed to addressing ways to prevent deaths by suicide and the ongoing impact of suicide on the veteran community.

The AIHW’s report provides the most recent and up-to-date statistics on the deaths by suicide of serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel.

This year’s update includes a significant expansion of the study population and will, for the first time, include anyone with a single day of ADF service from 1 January 1985 who died by suicide between 2001 and 2019. The larger study population enables more detailed analysis, providing greater insight into the risk and protective factors for suicide within the permanent, reserve and ex-serving populations.

Because the ex-serving population included in this latest update is more than double that of the previous report, the number of suicides reported in this report has increased. However, the general patterns, including rates of suicide and comparisons with the general Australian population, remain similar to previous studies.

The AIHW’s Serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force members who have served since 1985: suicide monitoring 2001 to 2019 report is now available and a recording of the AIHW’s webinar on the report’s findings can be found on Vimeo.

The National Commissioner for Defence and Veteran Suicide Prevention’s Preliminary Interim Report tabled today is now available.

When undertaking the inquiry, the Interim National Commissioner conducted multiple engagements with the Defence and veteran community, government departments, medical professionals and peak bodies. In addition, a broad assessment of previous inquiries, reports and reviews were conducted.

The Preliminary Interim Report makes a number of recommendations for consideration across government, Defence and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. It will be important to work with the veteran community when considering these recommendations and responding to this report.

With the commencement of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, there will continue to be significant review and consultation with the Defence and veteran community. I would like to thank the Interim National Commissioner for her work and to all who supported the inquiry.

Should you have any questions or enquiries about the Royal Commission, including how to make submissions and timeframes for hearings, these should all be forwarded directly to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.

There is a broad range of mental health support services available to veterans and families who may be experiencing concerns with their mental health or thoughts of suicide.

We urge media to reference these support services in any reporting on this report or matters relating to the Defence and veteran communities more broadly. We also request that media organisations consider the Mindframe guidelines which are intended to support safe and accurate reporting, portrayal and communication of suicide.

Media enquiries

DVA Media

  • Call: (02) 6289 6466
  • Email: media.team [at] dva.gov.au (media[dot]team[at]dva[dot]gov[dot]au)
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