title: Perceived reasons for, opinions about, and suggestions for elders considering suicide: elderly outpatients' perspectives.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purposes of this study were to explore elderly outpatients' perceived reasons for, opinions of, and suggestions for elderly people considering suicide in Taiwan.
  
  
  METHODS
  Elderly outpatients (N = 83) were recruited in 2011-2012 by convenience sampling from three randomly selected medical centers in Taiwan. Data were collected in individual interviews using a semi-structured guide and analyzed by content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Findings revealed that most participants had heard of elderly suicide, with television news as the main source for their information. Their opinions about elderly suicide reflected judgmental attitudes, negative emotional reactions, expectations of social welfare, and could happen after losing one's meaning in life. Their suggestions for elderly people considering suicide fell into four major themes: give up suicidal ideas, seek help, enhance social welfare, and attend religious activities.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Since television news was the main source for participants' information about elderly suicide, this mass medium should be used in suicide prevention to disseminate suicide knowledge, increase access to help, and strengthen suicide-protective factors among the elderly. Furthermore, no participants mentioned depression as a reason for attempted or completed suicide among older people despite depression being a well-known suicide-risk factor. Future suicide-prevention programs should emphasize the role of depression in suicide among older people. Participants also did not suggest that older people considering suicide seek help from the health system. Thus, older people should be educated about the role of the health system in suicide prevention and trained as gatekeepers to recognize signs of suicide ideation and respond appropriately.
authors: a Division of Internal Medicine , Department of Internal Medicine , Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan , Taiwan.
authors: Ying-Jen
authors: YJ
authors: Chen
authors: Yun-Fang
authors: YF
authors: Tsai
authors: Yan-Chiou
authors: YC
authors: Ku
authors: Shwu-Hua
authors: SH
authors: Lee
authors: Hsiu-Lan
authors: HL
authors: Lee
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001290:Attitude; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D010045:Outpatients / Q000523:psychology; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology*; D013624:Taiwan; D000092864:Suicide Prevention
keywords: gatekeepers; mass media; older people; suicide prevention