Analysis of Newspaper Reporting of Non-fatal Suicide Attempts During the Covid-19 Lockdown in Pakistan

Abstract

Background: This study was aimed to observe newspaper reports about non-fatal suicide attempts in Pakistan during the COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: We performed content analysis of news reports about incomplete suicides from four vernacular newspapers of Pakistan between March and August 2020. Results: A total of 87 news reports about suicide attempts were examined; the vast majority of the suicide attempters was Muslims (78%), males (64%), females (36%) with (33%) mentions of age, ranging from 19–30 years, and married were (76%). However, occupation was largely missing from (93%) of the news. Self-poisoning was the commonly reported method in (65%) of suicide attempts, whereas familial discord was the leading risk factor for (72%) of suicide attempts. Conclusions: Although psychological intervention is crucial to reduce familial discords as risk factors, monitoring the mental health conditions of people vulnerable to suicide and the figures on attempted suicides should be maintained and collected nationally and regionally.