This report, as in the past, analyses only Regular Force males who have died by suicide. Medical Professional Technical Suicide Reviews (MPTSRs) are completed for all CAF deaths from suicide, including Reserve and female members; however, data from those investigations are not included in this analysis for the following reasons:
- Female suicide numbers are small (range between 0 and 2 events per year), which precludes the ability to conduct trend analyses. In addition, reporting separately on their characteristics would contravene the privacy of the involved individuals (“identity” and “attribute” disclosure).
- For Reserve Force data there are issues associated with completeness, in addition to concerns with possible identity and attribute disclosure as discussed above. Since many Reserve Force members receive their health care in the provincial health care system, Reserve member reporting and their available records may be incomplete.
- Since data on suicide attempts is often incomplete, due to differences in its definition and inconsistent reporting by members, and in keeping with other occupational health studies, this report evaluates only deaths from suicide, not attempts. Furthermore, the data used for this analysis include only those who have died of suicide while active in the Regular Forces, and do not include those who have died of suicide after retirement from the military. For more information on Veterans see the 2019 Veteran Suicide Mortality Study
