title: Patients of a public state mental health system who commit suicide.
abstract: Twelve per cent of suicides in Missouri during a 3-year period were identified as having been patients of the state mental health care system by computer matching of death certificate tapes and a statewide case registry file. The percentage of Missouri suicides who had been patients varied markedly among age groups. Compared to nonpatient suicides, the patient suicides had a more equal male/female ratio and were younger. Diagnostically, schizophrenia, alcoholism (among males), and affective disorder (among females) were prominent. Nonwhites had a low incidence of suicide. The significance of the patient status at the time of death is discussed.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006779:Hospitals, Public; D006783:Hospitals, State; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D008923:Missouri; D013405:Suicide / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*