Mental Health

Photo Credit Chappy Achen

If you or someone you know is considering self-harm, please call 988 or
call the Southeast Crisis Response at 1-844-274-7472 or visit www.crisisresponsesoutheastmn.com.

Mental health is rated the top local health concern by the 2022 Goodhue County Community Health Needs Assessment. The Minnesota Department of Health defines mental health as more than the absence of disease. It also includes, “life satisfaction, self-acceptance, sense of purpose, identity, feeling connected and belonging, empowerment, and resilience, which is the ability to bounce back after setbacks.”

Percentage of Adults Reporting Frequent Mental Distress

Percentage of adults reporting 14 or more days of poor mental health per month (age-adjusted)

Summary: 14% of us report we experience 14 or more days of poor mental health each month. At the county level, this has consistently increased since 2016.

Details: Frequent Mental Distress is defined as adults who reported that their mental health was not good on at least 14 of the last 30 days.

Source: 2024 County Health Rankings (using 2021 data).

Adults’ Average Number of Mentally Unhealthy Days in Past 30 Days

Average number of mentally unhealthy days reported in past 30 days (age-adjusted)

Summary: In Goodhue County, those of us aged 25 years and older reported we each had an average of 4 mentally unhealthy days out of the last 30. This data was tallied right before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Details: A Mentally Unhealth Day is when one is feeling stressed, depressed, or experiencing problems with emotion.

Source: 2024 County Health Rankings (using 2021 Data).

Percent of 8th and 11th Grade Students Who Report They Have Seriously Considered Attempting Suicide

Percent of students who have not seriously considered attempting suicide

Summary: In 2022, a shocking one-third of our 8th-grade girls and 19% of our 8th-grade boys in Red Wing who answered the Minnesota Student Survey reported they have seriously considered attempting suicide. That percentage continues to increase into 11th grade, with 37% of girls and 23% of boys reporting the same. The percentages for Red Wing are somewhat higher than those of the state.

Details: The Minnesota Student Survey is an anonymous survey administered to Minnesota students every three years during the school day. For this statistic, students were asked, “Have you ever seriously considered attempting suicide?”

Source: 2022 Minnesota Student Survey, Minnesota Department of Education

Percent of 8th and 11th Grade Students Who Report They Have Attempted Suicide

Percent of students who have seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year

Summary: In 2022, a heartbreaking 19% of our 11th-grade girls and 10% of our 11th-grade boys in Red Wing who answered the Minnesota Student Survey reported they had attempted suicide. These numbers are also extremely high at the eighth-grade level, with 16% of girls and 10% of boys reporting the same. They are also higher numbers than the state overall.

Details: The Minnesota Student Survey is an anonymous survey administered to Minnesota students every three years during the school day. For this statistic, students were asked, “Have you ever actually attempted suicide?”

Source: 2022 Minnesota Student Survey, Minnesota Department of Education

Rate of Overall Deaths Due to Suicide

Number of deaths due to suicide per 100,000 population (age-adjusted)

Summary: Goodhue County has a slightly higher overall rate of suicide than both the state and the country. Our rate increased in 2021 after having been the same for the previous three years.

Details: The rate of resident deaths (any age) due to suicide is a rate per 100,000 population, age-adjusted. Each number is a rate that is calculated from data over a 5-year period.

Source: 2024 County Health Rankings (using 2016-2021 data)