In 2013, Lee Eun-byeol, a nurse at Mokpo Jung-Ang Hospital in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, received a 15-year-old patient who weighed only 35 kilograms. The teenager had just been admitted to the hospital’s emergency unit after cutting her wrist in an attempt to end her own life.

And it wasn’t the teen’s first attempt. She was reportedly suffering from depression after being constantly bullied by her classmates at school. Her mother also had mental health issues, while her father was physically abusive whenever he was drunk. Her younger brother, too, was in need of attention as he was autistic.

“I heard the first time she tried to end her life was when she was an elementary school student,” Lee told The Korea Herald. “She was admitted to our hospital for suicide attempts at least 10 times.”

The teenager, however, was able to receive help as South Korea’s Health Ministry started offering special support programs for suicide attempt victims who get admitted to emergency units of hospitals nationwide starting June 2013.

The service, which consists of mental health and welfare support, was introduced partly in response to the result of a government survey, which showed Koreans who have attempted to take their own lives are 25 times more likely to die of suicide than those who have never attempted it.

Suicide has become the most common cause of death among school children in South Korea -- fourth most common cause of all citizens -- with up to 40 children and adults ending their own lives every day.

“When you talk to those who have attempted suicide, you learn about all the problems that our society has,” Lee said. “Most of them -- especially teenagers -- have more than one reason. There’s domestic violence, financial difficulties and the lack of support network. All problems are connected to one another.”

Ever since the service was launched, some 13,643 Koreans who have attempted suicide were admitted to emergency facilities nationwide. A total of 597 patients died while being treated. Among the survivors, 6,129 agreed to receive help. While 7.5 percent of those who chose not to use the service ended up committing suicide later, the number was lower at 3.7 percent among those who chose to take the program from 2013-2015.

The service includes regular phone calls and home-visits from social workers, as well as counseling sessions. Patients will be also referred to different state-run agencies according to their needs. For example, a man who tried to take his own life after learning that he was going to lose his vision due to a rare disease, was introduced to a special support center where he could learn about how to read braille and receive mobility training, on top of psychiatric treatment.

Another man, who had been struggling financially, was referred to a social worker at the nearest regional district office, who helped him apply for welfare programs that were available for him.

Of all general hospitals in Seoul, Asan Medical Center is the only medical facility that offers hyperbaric oxygen therapy, the medical use of oxygen at an ambient pressure higher than atmospheric pressure, which is often used to treat those who attempt suicide by inhaling coal fumes.

“As a result, the largest number of those brought in after attempting suicide are those who ingested coal fumes,” said Kim Min-ju, a social worker who works for suicide attempt cases in the hospital.

In 2013, Kim met an 80-year-old man who was admitted to the hospital for drug overdose. He tried to end this life by taking a large number of sleeping pills on the first anniversary of his late wife’s death.

After spending many days at the hospital’s critical unit, the man told Kim that he has no desire to live as he no longer has a spouse to live with and his age doesn’t allow him to live an active life. He was also struggling with the relationship with his grown-up children.

Kim said most of her patients have dysfunctional relationships with their family members, or don’t speak to them at all. Her observation correlates with last year’s data released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which showed that 28 percent of Koreans felt they have no meaningful social support network at all -- not a single person they can speak to or rely on -- in times of crisis. This was the highest among the OECD countries.

Kim offered the man a counseling program in which he was asked to write his autobiography, and talk honestly about his personal history. Both his health condition and relationship with his children improved after the counseling sessions, she said.

But not all cases end in positive results, Kim said. “The worst is to see someone die at the hospital after attempting suicide, and see his or her family member taking their own lives shortly thereafter,” she said.

According to the Welfare Ministry’s latest data, the largest cause of suicide deaths in Korea is financial difficulties. Among the 121 suicide victims researched for the report, 54.5 percent of them had been unemployed for at least three months before taking their own lives. Also, 73.6 percent were struggling with their job prospects and income. Also, 40 percent of them had been having a hard time paying off their debts while alive.

Kim from Asan Medical Center said the largest number of attempted suicide victims who get treated at her hospital tried to take their own lives because of financial problems.

“This is where I feel somewhat powerless as a social worker,” she said. “In order for a depression patient who developed the condition because of financial problems to get better, he or she needs to have that problem fixed. But social workers and psychiatrists can’t really help them with that.”

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)