Citation

Hagen J, Hjelmeland H, Knizek BL. Death Stud. 2017; 41(6): 360-367.

Affiliation

Department of Applied Social Science , Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) , Trondheim , Norway.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/07481187.2017.1284955

PMID

28129046

Abstract

In this qualitative interview study, we investigated how therapists experience and view treatment and care for suicidal patients in psychiatric wards. The focus is on aspects that may contribute toward shaping and possibly constraining therapists' connections with suicidal individuals. We conducted semi-structured interviews of four psychiatrists and four psychologists, and analyzed the data by means of thematic analysis. The findings suggest that high emphasis on diagnostics and standardized suicide risk assessments, limited direct care of suicidal patients, and fragmented mental health services may challenge therapists' connections with suicidal patients.

Language: en

Keywords

mental health professionals; professional-patient relationships; psychiatry; qualitative research; suicide