The Clarke Institute experience with completed suicide: 1966 to 1997

Preventing suicide among inpatients

OBJECTIVE

Inpatient suicide comprises a proportionately small but clinically important fraction of suicide. This study is intended as a qualitative analysis of the comprehensive English literature, highlighting what is known and what can be done to prevent inpatient suicide.

METHOD

A systematic search was conducted on the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, Web of Knowledge, and a personal database for articles on cohort series, preferably controlled, of inpatient suicide (not deliberate self-harm or attempted suicide, unless they also dealt specifically with suicide data).

RESULTS

A qualitative discussion is presented, based on the findings of the literature searched.

CONCLUSIONS

The bulk of inpatient suicides actually occur not on the ward but off premises, when the patient was on leave or had absconded. Peaks occur shortly after admission and discharge. It is possible to reduce suicide risk on the ward by having a safe environment, optimizing patient visibility, supervising patients appropriately, careful assessment, awareness of and respect for suicide risk, good teamwork and communication, and adequate clinical treatment.

Inevitable suicide: a new paradigm in psychiatry

The author suggests that a new paradigm may be needed which holds that some suicides may be inevitable. The goal of this paradigm would be to diminish the sense of failure and inadequacy felt by many psychiatrists who experience the suicide of a patient and to increase understanding of the unique biopsychosocial profile of those whose suicides appear to be inevitable. The author stresses that this proposed paradigm should not be misconstrued as therapeutic nihilism but rather should serve to stimulate efforts to treat this patient population more effectively. Risk factors that place individuals at high risk for suicide are reviewed, including presence of a mental illness, genetic predisposition, and factors such as a history of abuse, divorce, unemployment, male gender, recent discharge from a psychiatric hospital, prior suicide attempts, alcohol or other substance abuse, a history of panic attacks, and persistent suicidal thoughts, especially if coupled with a plan. The author notes that, in those suicides that appear to have been inevitable, risk factors are not only numerous but at the extreme end of profound pathology. The example of Ernest Hemingway is used to illustrate how such a combination of risk factors may have contributed to his eventual suicide. Psychiatrists, like other doctors, may have to acknowledge that some psychiatric disorders are associated with a high mortality rate as a natural outcome. This could lead to heightened vigilance, a more realistic view of what can and cannot be achieved with therapy, and efforts to improve the quality of life of patients at high risk for suicide with the goal of reducing this risk and prolonging their lives. (Journal of Psychiatric Practice 2012;18:221-224).

Suicide in the medical setting

BACKGROUND

Little is known about suicide in the hospital setting. Although suicide is a major public health concern, the literature on suicide in the medical setting is limited, and accurate data on hospital-based suicides are unavailable. Consequently, the prevalence, demographic characteristics, and risk factors for suicide in this population are unknown. The literature on completed suicides in medical or surgical wards of a general hospital was summarized to generate hypotheses for further investigation regarding in-hospital suicides.

METHODS

MEDLINE, PsycINFO, IndexCat, and Scopus were queried for English-language articles on inpatient suicides in a general hospital. These data were compared with reports of suicide by psychiatric inpatients and the annual suicide statistics from the U.S. general population.

RESULTS

Twelve articles detailing 335 suicides in the medical setting were included. Published data on hospital-based suicides are limited by selection bias, incomplete reporting, and a small number of completed suicides. Consequently, no significant setting-specific findings emerge from the existing literature. Reported cases suggest that inpatients who commit suicide in the medical setting may have a different demographic profile and employ different methods of suicide in comparison with individuals who commit suicide in psychiatric settings or the general population.

DISCUSSION

Given the absence of systematic data collection and the highly variable nature of reported suicides, it could not be determined if clinically relevant distinctions exist between suicides in different health care settings. Prospective and more detailed data collection are needed because a more complete characterization of suicide in medical inpatients may be useful in both prevention approaches and institutional policies with respect to hospital-based suicides.

Suicide attempts of schizophrenia patients: a case-controlled study in tertiary care

BACKGROUND

Schizophrenia is one of the disorders in which suicide attempts and death by suicide are pronounced. However, there is paucity of data regarding suicide attempts by schizophrenia patients. The aim of the present study was to characterize a large sample of schizophrenia patients in tertiary care who had attempted suicide.

METHOD

Over a 15-year period all computerized records of admissions of adult schizophrenia patients were examined. Patients who had attempted suicide were defined as the index group and the comparison group was comprised of the next admission of a patient suffering from schizophrenia who did not attempt suicide prior to hospitalization.

RESULTS

There were 10,006 admissions of patients suffering from schizophrenia during the study period. Of these, 1094 (10.9%) records comprise the index group (patients who had attempted suicide), 380 women and 714 men, mean age for the group 39.6+/-12.9 years. The comparison group of patients matched for diagnosis (N=1094), consisted of 302 women and 792 men, mean age for this group was 42.9+/-13.7 years. Four variables significantly differentiated between groups. Patients who had attempted suicide were younger (39.6 vs. 42.9 years; p=0.00), higher percentage of females (34.7% vs. 27.6%; p=0.00), with increased rates of co-morbid physical illness (27.5% vs. 20.4%; p=0.00) notably cardiovascular and diabetes and with a higher rate of alcohol and drug abuse (32.1% vs. 12.4%; p=0.00).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study emphasizes several significant factors associated with attempted suicide amongst schizophrenia patients notably physical co-morbidity and abuse of alcohol and drugs. These need be integrated into existing risk assessment schemes thus aiding in decreasing adverse outcomes in this vulnerable group of patients.

Predicting inpatient suicides and suicide attempts by using clinical routine data?

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed at exploring prevalence and risk factors of inpatient suicides and attempted suicides in a psychiatric hospital.

METHOD

Based on the German psychiatric basic documentation system, 20,543 patients with 40,451 episodes of inpatient care (1995-2004) in a psychiatric state hospital were included. Besides univariate analyses, multivariate logistic regression analyses and classification and regression tree analyses were performed.

RESULTS

Forty-one inpatient suicides were recorded. Risk of inpatient suicide is increased for patients with resistance to psychopharmacological treatment, previous suicide attempt, severe side effects and supportive psychotherapy before admission. Two hundred fourteen inpatient suicide attempts occurred during the 10-year period. Risk factors of inpatient suicide attempt are assault, personality disorder, previous suicide attempt, psychopharmacological treatment resistance, suicidal thoughts at admission, schizophrenia, depression, female sex and length of stay.

CONCLUSION

The identified risk factors underline the need for a cautious investigation of previous suicide attempts as well as for giving special attention to patients who have problems with psychopharmacotherapy during hospitalization.

Suicide prevention in the psychiatric hospital

It is currently impossible to distinguish between patients with depression who will make a suicide attempt and those who will not. Prevention, therefore, must be based on the assumption that any patient with more than mild symptoms of depression is at risk of suicide, and can only be effective if it is applicable to all patients with moderate to severe depression. A treatment strategy that differentiated between regressive and progressive therapeutic measures was developed for patients admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Regressive, as opposed to progressive, treatment meant that the patient was temporarily relieved of virtually all responsibilities for self and others. Progressive measures were strictly avoided for all patients with symptoms of depression, regardless of the primary diagnosis. This strategy was tested on 5,149 inpatients and day patients over a period of 6.25 years and compared with 6,891 patients over the 15.75 years prior to this period. The suicide rate was 97 (per 100,000 admissions) compared with 319 in the previous period. The treatment method appears to be able to reduce the suicide rate. Although this result was achieved with hospital patients, it suggests that a regressive treatment method could be promising if developed for outpatient treatment as well.

Suicidal behavior in schizophrenia

There is a high prevalence of suicidal behavior in individuals suffering from schizophrenia and recent investigations substantially elucidate this problem and provide useful insights about clinical risk factors, neurobiologic underpinnings and the impact of various treatments on reducing such behavior. The risk of suicide is greatest early in the course of schizophrenic illness but continues throughout life; risk factors for suicidal behavior include psychosis, depression and substance abuse. Effectively treating positive symptoms and depression, reducing substance abuse, avoiding akathisia, addressing demoralization and instilling hope are important elements in this treatment approach. The newer generation of atypical antipsychotics (particularly clozapine) and new psychologic approaches (particularly cognitive behavioral therapy) appear to be useful in reducing suicidality in schizophrenia. The significant advances in defining the neurobiologic basis of suicidality may enable the development of more effective treatments. The renewed emphasis on resilience and recovery as desired outcomes in schizophrenia and the accompanying sense of hope encourage optimism about effectively reducing suicidality in schizophrenia. Over the past 10 years, much has been learnt and hopefully this momentum will be translated into increasingly better outcomes.

Suicide attempts in schizophrenia and affective disorders with relation to some specific demographical and clinical characteristics

Demographical and clinical characteristics have been reported to modulate the risk for suicide. This study analysed demographical and clinical characteristics with respect to lifetime suicide attempts in 500 individuals affected with schizophrenic or affective disorders. Suicide attempts were associated with poor premorbid social adjustment, low age at onset, low scores on the "Global Assessment Scale" and childlessness in females.

Correlates of suicide in the older adult population in Quebec

This study was undertaken to describe the characteristics of adults aged 60 years and over who committed suicide in Quebec in 1998-1999. In this study, 42.6% of the suicide cases presented mental disorders at the time of their death, mainly depression. Sixty-five (65.3%) percent of the suicide cases would have been considered as having a mental health disorder if sub-threshold depression cases were included. Only 27.7% of the cases did not express any idea of death during the 6-month period preceding their suicide. One interesting finding was that 53.5% of the suicide cases consulted a general practitioner or specialist during the 2-week period preceding their death. Our results showed that only 8.1% had a severe level of functional limitations at the time of their death. This result leads us to interpret with caution the conclusion of some studies suggesting that physical frailty is a major causal factor associated with suicide among the elderly.

Mourning, insight, and reduction of suicide risk in schizophrenia

Literature on the assessment of suicide risk in individuals with schizophrenia is summarized, including the risk factors shared in common with the general population, illness-specific risk factors, and times of heightened risk in the course of the illness. Because depression emerges as a significant risk factor, it is differentiated from conditions that can mimic depression: mourning, aprosodia, and negative symptoms. Because insight or awareness of illness carries risk, as does the lack of insight, the psychological and neurocognitive components of impaired and of accurate insight are described. Finally, the role of mourning in the attainment of accurate, usable insight that can reduce suicidal risk is described.

Building a case for understanding the lived experiences of males who attempt suicide in Alberta, Canada

Suicide is a serious public health concern in Alberta, with, on average, over 400 Albertans taking their own lives annually. The case for concern is even more pronounced when one considers that for younger Albertans (those aged less than 45 years), suicide is the second leading cause of death. While trends in rates of suicide fluctuate over time, it is important to note that suicide rates for males have been at least three times higher than the corresponding rates for females since the 1950s. Furthermore, these differences have increased so that, by the 1990s the rate for male suicide was four times higher than that of females. In addition, rates are increasing at a faster pace in younger cohorts. Despite the existence of numerous positivistically orientated studies, and the introduction of a range of strategies to help prevent suicide, significant reductions in suicide rates have not been achieved. Similarly, while there is a substantial literature on the issue of suicide in Canada, there remain many gaps in our knowledge. Our understanding of the experiences and the meanings attributed to these experiences that motivate contemporary Albertan males to attempt suicide is far from complete. In order to design interventions to help reduce the suicide rate, whether these are interventions at the preprimary, primary or secondary level of care, it is necessary to gain a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of this highly complex behaviour. Consequently, there is an urgent need to better understand the particular life experiences and the meanings that individuals attach to these experiences. Accordingly, this paper makes the case for the use of hermeneutic, phenomenological investigations, as a means to further elucidate the lived experiences of suicidal Alberta males.

Research endeavours into suicide: a need to shift the emphasis

According to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2002), approximately one million people died as a result of suicide in the year 2000. Perhaps more worrisome, evidence provided by the WHO (2002) indicates that the global rate of suicide has continued to rise since 1950. Consequently, suicide should be regarded as a global problem and one that is increasing in magnitude. Drawing predominantly on policy and empirical literature emanating from Canada and the UK, this article will show that, despite a substantial research effort and the production of an associated literature, suicide rates continue to rise in the example countries. Even given the existence of numerous positivistically oriented studies, and the introduction of a range of strategies to help prevent suicide, significant reductions in suicide rates have not been achieved. Similarly, while there exists a substantial literature on the issue of suicide, there are many gaps in our knowledge and our understanding of the experiences, and the meanings attributed to these experiences that motivate people to attempt suicide is far from complete. Accordingly, the author argues that there is an urgent need to better understand the particular life experiences and the meanings that individuals attach to suicidal experiences. In order to design interventions to help reduce the suicide rate, whether these are interventions at the pre-primary, primary or secondary level of care, it is argued that it is necessary to gain a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of this highly complex behaviour. Consequently, this article makes the case for the use of hermeneutic, phenomenological investigations, in order to further elucidate the lived experiences of people who have attempted suicide.