Study: 24 percent of C-Falls students considered suicide, most drink booze
By BECCA PARSONS
Hungry Horse News
Columbia Falls High School has a higher percentage of students who have considered suicide than Flathead County and Montana schools, according to a survey conducted by the Office of Public Instruction.
OPI randomly selects students to take the Youth Fisk Behavior Survey every two years. In February, OPI anonymously polled 4,486 public high school students from 49 schools in grades 9 to 12 across the state. At Columbia Falls High School, 87 students participated, which is about 13 percent of the school.
In the year preceding the survey, 24.1 percent of Columbia Falls students reported seriously considering suicide, but only 19.5 percent made a plan to do it and 15 percent actually attempted it. In Flathead County schools the percentage of students considering suicide is lower at 19.3 percent and statewide it’s even lower at 18.8 percent. Statewide, 15.5 percent reported making a plan to attempt suicide, 8.9 percent had attempted it.
Columbia Falls students who reported getting medical treatment for attempted suicide was only 3.5 percent. This is about the same as the statewide percentage of 3.1 percent.
Some other differences in the survey results between Columbia Falls and statewide schools involved tobacco, alcohol, marijuana and prescription drug use, and sexual activity.
About half of Columbia Falls students reported trying a cigarette at some time in their life, but only 17 percent had smoked in the past month. However, 39 percent of students had used an electronic vapor product recently. Statewide results were lower — 39 percent had tried cigarettes, 13 percent had smoked recently and about 30 percent had used electronic vapor.
In Columbia Falls, 16 percent reported using chewing tobacco, but statewide only 7.5 percent reported.
About 80 percent of Columbia Falls students have had at least one drink of alcohol in their life. In the past month, 33 percent had consumed five or more drinks within a couple of hours. Statewide results were lower — 70 percent had drank in their life, 20 percent had drank excessively.
Forty-three percent of Columbia Falls students reported using marijuana in their life. A quarter of the students had used it in the past month. Statewide, 38 had used marijuana at least once, 20 percent had used it recently.
About 22 percent of Columbia Falls students reported taking a prescription without a doctor’s permission at least once in their life, but only 16 percent reported it statewide.
Over half of Columbia Falls students have had sex. Thirty-four percent of which have had one or two partners. Those who reported being physically forced to have sex was 8.2 percent, and statewide it was 8.7 percent. In Flathead County, the report of rape was higher at 10 percent. Drinking alcohol or using drugs before sex wasn’t a common practice in Columbia Falls at about 11 percent. More than half of those who had sex used a condom, 15 percent did not.
Other survey questions asked about driving, violence and bullying, diet and physical activity, and other drug use.
The survey includes a disclaimer that the results may not be representative of the entire student population depending on the sample size and procedures for how it is administered. The survey also has an error rate of approximately plus or minus three percent.