Rank
Figure 7 presents data by rank in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) for suicide deaths between 1 January 1997 and 31 December 2023 among ex-serving males who have served at least one day since 1 January 1985.
Rank describes organisational and workforce structures that determine a veteran’s position, opportunities, type of work, and entitlements (such as pay and conditions). This data is based on rank at time of separation. Rank is presented in 2 broad groups:
- officer ranks: an appointed Defence member who holds the rank of Midshipman or Officer Cadet, or higher (rank code O00 to O10)
- other ranks: a Defence member other than officer – that is, a sailor, soldier or airman of rank code E00 to E10.
Analysis by more detailed rank groups is not reported due to small numbers and are strongly linked to length of service.
Due to the small number of suicide deaths among ex-serving males who were officers in the 3-year periods of 2000–2002, 2004–2006, and 2005–2007, and ex-serving females overall, suicide rates by rank over time are not reported.
Figure 7: Rate of suicide for ex-serving males by rank, 1997–1999 to 2021–2023
This figure shows line graphs for the rate of suicide per 100,000 population per year among ex-serving males by rank group over time by 3-year periods from 1997 to 1999, to 2021 to 2023.
Notes:
- Suicide rates are shown in overlapping 3-year periods to increase the suicide count for each data point and improve the reliability of the data. Rates are not shown for 3-year periods where counts are lower than 5.
- Deaths data for the years 2021, 2022, and 2023 contain preliminary data and are subject to change as part of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) revisions process. For example, some deaths currently coded as ‘undetermined intent’ could later be determined by a coroner as ‘intentional self-harm’ (or vice-versa).
- Confidence Intervals (CIs) of 95% are used to indicate statistical uncertainty in suicide rates. These should be considered when comparing suicide rates between time points.
- Suicide rates denoted with a '*' should be interpreted with caution as the number of suicides is fewer than 20. These rates are subject to large fluctuations. ‘*’ notation can be viewed when hovering over a data point.
- Comparisons over time should only be made for non-overlapping 3-year periods (for example the 3-year periods 2002–2004 and 2003–2005 should not be compared).
See Data for underlying data (Table D2.10).
Help or support
If you need help or support, please contact:
- Open Arms – Veterans and Families Counselling – Phone: 1800 011 046
- Open Arms Suicide Intervention
- Defence All-hours Support Line (ASL) – Phone: 1800 628 036
- Defence Member and Family Helpline – Phone: 1800 624 608
- Defence Chaplaincy Support
- ADF Mental Health Services
- Lifeline – Phone: 13 11 14
- Suicide Call Back Service – Phone: 1300 659 467
- Beyond Blue Support Service – Phone: 1300 22 4636
For information on support provided by DVA, see: