Thursday, January 27, 2011

Some fun facts about suicide

Yesterday, I had to attend a Depression and Suicide prevention inservice for work... some parts of my job can be so incredibly uplifting. There were several interesting facts I learned that I had previously not known.
  • More Americans die by suicide than by homicide.
  • 93% of all suicides are completed by persons with an Axis I diagnosis
  • Suicide is the leading cause of death for persons with Bipolar Disorder
  • 15% of persons with Major Depressive Disorder will take their own lives, at a cost of $8 billion dollars to the U.S. economy per year.
  • 15% of persons with Schizophrenia die by suicide
  • 5-7% of persons with Borderline Personality Disorder die by suicide
  • 50% of completed suicides met with a mental health provider at some time in their life
  • 17% will be in treatment with a mental health provider at the time of their suicide
  • Limitations on inpatient services, shortened lengths-of-stay and premature discharge have shifted the risk of suicide malpractice to outpatient providers
  • Graduate schools preparing practitioners for the mental health field provide little in the way of formal course work in suicide risk assessment and risk management
  • Mental health care providers are not immune to the myths, misperceptions, stigma and taboos associated with suicide. They may be reluctant to deal with the subject in an honest and helpful fashion.
  • The well intended, but uninformed acts of caring professional communities are no substitute for specific knowledge about suicidal behavior, ignorance can not be an excuse for poor practice.
  • Studies have repeatedly shown 85% of suicides are premeditated and approximately 90% of persons who take their own lives communicate their intentions to someone they know, frequently a health care provider.
  • Suicide malpractice claims are the leading cause of suits against all mental health practitioners, including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and nurses.
It really made me think of the ignorant attitude of EMS providers towards psychiatric patients. It is upsetting that many EMS providers are not even well intended - they willingly buy into the stigma and taboo of psychiatric disorders and suicide, dismissing them as medical concerns. I have even heard providers call these patients "a waste of oxygen". 911 is often the first line of help for patients with suicidal ideation. They are asking for help - a task that can be exceedingly difficult to do when in that state of mind. I wish they would receive the degree of respect that they deserve.
Reminiscing on my days in EMS makes me incredibly thankful that I shifted my career.

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