Care service use in 2 years preceding suicide among older adults: comparison with those who died a natural death and those who lived longer

Suicide Risk Help-Seeking Among Middle- to Old-Age Adults: A Systematic Review

Background and Objectives

Suicide has become a major public health concern worldwide and in the United States. Rates of suicide increase during the life course and are highest among middle- to old-age adults. Help-seeking represents a crucial coping mechanism that can mitigate suicide risk. Yet, less is known about suicide risk help-seeking, especially among these age groups. To address this knowledge gap, a systematic review of existing literature was performed to obtain a refined understanding of help-seeking for suicide risk among middle- to old-age adults.

Research Design and Methods

Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, electronic databases and key journals with suicide and/or gerontology focuses were searched to identify peer-reviewed publications in English between 2010 and 2020. A total of 4 732 unduplicated publications were screened for relevance based on titles and abstracts, of which 52 were reviewed in full text.

Results

Twenty-four articles met inclusion criteria and were included in the qualitative synthesis. These articles discussed a range of topics, including the prevalence of service utilization, service use prior to a suicide death, and correlates of help-seeking. In general, the prevalence of service utilization was low and varied by suicidal history (eg, higher prevalence among individuals with a history of suicide attempts than those with suicide ideation only). Key facilitators (eg, current or history of suicidal thoughts, plans, or attempts) and barriers (eg, stigma) for service use and help-seeking were also identified.

Discussion and Implications

Findings highlight the need for future studies and tailored services to improve age-appropriate and culturally responsive suicide prevention and intervention strategies for middle- to old-age adults.

Suicide prevention strategies for older persons-An integrative review of empirical and theoretical papers

AIM

To synthesize suicide prevention strategies for older adults. The review question was Which suicide prevention strategies are useful for older adults?

DESIGN

Integrative review.

DATA SOURCES

Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, Ovid PsycINFO and PubMed were searched for articles published between January 2009 and December 2019.

REVIEW METHODS

An integrative review of quantitative, qualitative and theoretical papers with a qualitative thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Key aspects of the included studies contributed to the formulation of four themes: (1) Recognizing older adults' physical and/or mental health problems and referring them for help and treatment, (2) Designing an educational programme, (3) Communication and dialogue about warning signs and (4) Social support and awareness of causing significant others emotional pain. The findings indicate an urgent need to identify effective suicide prevention strategies for older adults.