Research article

The characteristics of suicides within a week of discharge after psychiatric hospitalisation – a nationwide register study

Sami Pirkola^1,2 , Britta Sohlman¹ and Kristian Wahlbeck^1,3

¹  Mental Health Group, Health and Social Services Division, National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES), Lintulahdenkuja 4, FIN-00530, Helsinki Finland

²  Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research, National Public Health Institute (KTL), Helsinki Finland

³  Vaasa Central Hospital, Vaasa, Finland

author email corresponding author email

BMC Psychiatry 2005, 5:32doi:10.1186/1471-244X-5-32

Published:	25 August 2005

Abstract

Background

The characteristics of victims of immediate post-discharge suicides are not well known. We explored these characteristics for the purposes of better recognition and preventive efforts of potential immediate post-discharge suicides.

Methods

Suicides from a Finnish nationwide register were linked with preceding periods of psychiatric inpatient treatment. Characteristics of suicides within a week of discharge were compared to those occurring later after discharge.

Results

Compared to other previously hospitalised suicide victims, those committing suicide within a week of discharge were more often female, unmarried, had a higher grade of education and a diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum or affective disorder, tended to use more drowning and jumping from heights as the methods for suicide and had gained a smaller improvement in psychological functioning during hospitalization.

Conclusion

These characteristics indicate a more severe psychopathology, relatively poorer level of functioning, less global response to hospitalisation, and a more frequent choice of lethal and easily available method for suicide. Potentially suicidal psychiatric patients should be better recognized and an immediate follow-up arranged if it is decided they be discharged.