Preventing jailhouse suicides.
Psychiatric consultants to city and county jails are confronted with the challenge of preventing jailhouse suicides, a problem of national scope. Suicide prevention programs in jails must emphasize screening and identification, psychological support, observation, disarmament, clarity and consistency, and diagnosis, treatment, and/or hospitalization. Exactly how these principles are formulated and implemented will depend on the unique circumstances of each jail. Finally information is presented as evidence that a program that embodies these principles can effectively reduce the number of suicides in a jail where the average daily census has increased from fewer than 400 to greater than 900 in the past six years.
Felthous
A R
AR
Adult Division, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston 77555-0428, USA.
D005160:Facility Design and Construction; D006801:Humans; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology*; D011330:Prisons / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012934:Social Isolation; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology; D014481:United States; D000092864:Suicide Prevention