A Study of Psychiatric Emergencies: Part II. Suicide

Abstract

Suicide attempts or suicide ideation are often of critical importance in defining a psychiatric emergency. Follow-up studies of the psychiatric emergency population for the subsequent incidence of attempted or completed suicide are needed to identify high and low risk groups and to measure the effectiveness of the psychiatric emergency service. Suicide problems were presenting symptoms in 28.2 percent of psychiatric emergency evaluations seen in a three month period. The 10–29 decades for females and the 10–19 decade for males were represented significantly more often than older decades. Race and marital status were not related to suicide problems. There were seventeen known suicide attempts, but no known suicides in a six month follow-up period. This finding was contrasted with the results of a similar study done nine years previously at the same hospital and with a study done by the Cleveland Suicide Prevention Center, both of which found several suicides in the follow-up period. Possible reasons for the different results are discussed.