Comparisons between health board estimates and the all-Wales rate
The rate of deaths by suspected suicide was statistically significantly higher in residents of Powys Teaching Health Board (19.9 per 100,000, 95% CI 12.8-29.6 per 100,000) compared with the all-Wales rate (12.6 per 100,000). However, the confidence intervals around the rate were wide due to the rate being based on 24 deaths in a relatively small population. Changes in small numbers may make a rate appear to be significant when it could still be due to random fluctuation.
The rates in residents of Swansea Bay University Health Board (16.3 per 100,000) and Hywel Dda University Health Board (13.1 per 100,000) were also higher than the all-Wales rate but the confidence intervals overlapped the all-Wales rate so they did not reach statistical significance. The remaining health board areas had lower rates than the all-Wales rate, although they were not statistically significantly different to the all-Wales rate.
Comparisons between health board estimates
The 95% confidence intervals of the health board rate estimates overlap but since two estimates with overlapping confidence intervals can still be statistically significantly different, further testing using the pairwise comparison of health boards was done. It showed that the rates in residents of Powys Teaching Health Board and Swansea Bay University Health Board were statistically significantly higher than the rates in residents of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, Cardiff & Vale University Health Board and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Boards. There were no other statistically significantly differences between the remaining health boards.
From these data you can conclude that the rate of deaths by suspected suicide was higher in residents of Powys Teaching Health Board compared with the all-Wales rate and with residents of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, Cardiff & Vale University Health Board and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Boards. The rate of deaths by suspected suicide was higher in residents of Swansea Bay University Health Board compared with residents of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, Cardiff & Vale University Health Board and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Boards.
Figure 3. Deaths by suspected suicide, by health board area of residence*, crude rate per 100,000, Welsh residents, 2022/23
Produced by Public Health Wales Observatory, using RTSSS data and MYE (ONS)
*6 cases were missing health board area of residence data therefore are not included