Describes Dutchess County Department of Mental Hygiene and New York State Bridge Authority's joint establishment of a suicide prevention telephone on Mid-Hudson Bridge. Telephone, which is directly connected to psychiatric emergency service, was used 30 times in two-year period. Data suggest that most would-be jumpers were ambivalent about dying…

A large (n = 14,892) consecutive sample of deliberate self-harm (attempted suicide) patients who presented to a general hospital in the United Kingdom during a 23-year study period was examined (over two consecutive time periods) in order to compare the characteristics of those who used self-cutting (n = 428) and those who self-poisoned (n =…

Attempts an exploratory study of the question, "What happens to drivers of vehicles involved in accidents in which there is a fatality, whether or not the driver was at fault?" The purpose of the investigation was to determine what crisis intervention is needed for such drivers. (Author)

Discusses suicide care as a core curriculum component of psychiatry residency. Discusses the reasons for formal conceptualization of suicide care education and offers a model curriculum as a reference for residency programs to compare their own activities in this important area of psychiatry. (Author/ABB)

Describes how the American Association of Suicidology (AAS) has accomplished some major goals, and lists 18 new developments in suicidology, reviewing changes over the last 40 years. Advocates a multidisciplinary approach to suicidology. Reviews the author's 10 commonalities of suicide, and his new "suicidal cubelet," which predicts…

Study examines the prevalence and demographic correlates of suicidal behavior in a defined population of urban, African American young adults and the degree of mental health service utilization among attempters. Results reveal that despite the severity of most attempts, few attempters received mental health services in their lifetime or at the…

Examines the role of the psychotherapist in working with terminally ill patients, both in helping the client prepare for death and in preparing the client's loved ones to be survivors. (Author/HMV)

The National College Health Assessment Survey (NCHA), sponsored by the American College Health Association, measured depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts among 15,977 college students in the academic year 1999? 2000. Similar to the National College Health Risk Behavior Survey, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and…

Risk factors for suicide include psychiatric disorders, social factors, psychological factors, and biologic and genetic factors. Important knowledge about why people commit suicide has been obtained from 20 psychological autopsy studies of suicide victims carried out over the past 40 years. Based upon these studies, recommendations are offered for…

Suggested that every hospital should have a suicide prevention committee which establishes written guidelines after surveying security areas and talking with staff and patients. Reasonable treatment requires that each patient be evaluated for suicide risk and that staff follow a treatment plan according to the hospital's own policies. (JAC)

Reports on the preliminary study of a time-limited, out-patient treatment for suicidal adolescents designed to reduce suicidal behavior and psychiatric inpatient admissions along with drop-out rates. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for adolescents seems to be effective in keeping them out of hospital and in treatment. DBT appears to be a…

Coroners' records are an accessible source of information on suicides. To assess their usefulness in relation to the investigation of specific methods of suicide, we examined coroners records for 492 suicides across 24 jurisdictions in England. Generally data on demographic variables were well recorded. Information on contact with general…

Discusses accepted standards of care for suicidal patients from the perspectives of the law, malpractice insurance claims, the mental health professions, and the ideal. A review of decisions of professional liability provides guidelines for what the court considers to be adequate care, suggesting an acceptance of minimal standards. (JAC)

Psychiatric inpatients admitted for suicidal danger were surveyed regarding their views on the benefits/limitations of written no-suicide agreements. These inpatients, for the most part, rated written no-suicide agreements in a positive manner and in ways consistent with clinical opinion expressed in a number of qualitative/expert opinion…

The decision for psychiatric hospitalization after deliberate self-poisoning (DSP) is not well understood. This study, a longitudinal cohort study of 3,148 consecutive DSP patients found 920 (29.2%) subjects were referred for psychiatric hospitalization, 576 (18.3%) on involuntary basis. A logistic regression analysis showed increased risk for:…