Citation

Chandramouleeswaran S, Edwin NC, Victor PJ, Tharyan P. Trop. Doct. 2014; 45(1): 21-26.

Affiliation

Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Prof BV Moses Centre for Evidence-Informed Health Care and Health Policy, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0049475514553985

PMID

25358507

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The reliable identification, by emergency physicians, of those with intentional self-poisoning at risk of repeating attempts is crucial, particularly in countries with a shortfall of mental health professionals.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study of intentional self-poisoning in India compared an emergency physician's assessment for the need for psychiatric referral, using the modified SAD PERSONS Scale (MSPS) as an interview guide, with a standard psychiatric interview.

RESULTS: In 67 consecutive adults with intentional self-poisoning, MSPS cut-off scores of 5 or more best approximated psychiatric assessments for the need for psychiatric referral (positive likelihood ratio 2.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.8-10.2; negative likelihood ratio 0.5, 95% CI 0.3-0.8).

CONCLUSIONS: MSPS-guided emergency physicians' assessments after self-poisoning showed modest concordance with psychiatric assessments of suicide-risk. Concordance with psychiatric assessments may improve if risk factors prevalent in different settings are identified and incorporated in the MSPS.

Language: en