Adolescent suicide attempters presenting to a pediatric facility.
This study profiles the characteristics of adolescent suicide attempters and the treatment they received in a pediatric emergency room (ER). A retrospective chart review of 4,072 adolescents seen in the ER at a children's hospital (CH) from July 1984 to June 1985 was undertaken. Twenty-seven adolescents who had deliberately injured themselves were identified. The average age was 14 years 7 months (range 11-19 years). Fifty-two percent of the patients were white and 78% were female. Ingestion was the most common method (78%), followed by attempted hanging (11%), and wrist laceration (7%). After evaluation by a pediatrician in the ER, 30% of the patients were treated and released, 11% were transferred directly to a psychiatric hospital, and 59% were admitted to the CH, with an average hospital stay of 1.88 days. Once hospitalized, consultations from psychiatry (81%), social service (50%), psychology (19%), and neurology (6%) were obtained. At the time of discharge from either the ER or CH, the patients had a variety of plans for ongoing care, with 52% being referred to outpatient counseling, 37% being transferred to a psychiatric hospital, and 11% having no documented plan for ongoing care. These results demonstrate that the evaluation of suicidal adolescents cared for in a pediatric facility may be episodic and suggest the need for a comprehensive program to approach the problem.
Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock.
M S
MS
Jay
C J
CJ
Graham
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Flowers
D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011041:Poisoning / Q000523:psychology; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012307:Risk Factors; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology*; D000092864:Suicide Prevention