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Affiliation
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Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professions Research Unit, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK. |
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Abstract
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OBJECTIVE: To map key policy documents worldwide and establish how they address the treatment and care needs of children and young people (CYP) who are suicidal.
DESIGN: We conducted a scoping review to systematically identify relevant key policy documents following a pre-established published protocol. DATA SOURCES: Four databases (CINAHL; Medline; PsycINFO; The Cochrane Database of Systematic reviews) and the websites of key government, statutory and non-statutory agencies were searched. Google and Google Scholar were used to identify other policy documents and relevant grey literature. Leading experts were consulted by email. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTED STUDIES: Policies, policy guidance, strategies, codes of conduct, national service frameworks, national practice guidance, white and green papers, and reviews of policy-concerned with indicated suicide prevention approaches for children up to 18 years old. Limited by English language and published after 2000. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Data were extracted using a predetermined template. Second reviewers independently extracted 25%. Documents were categorised as international guidance, national policy and national guidance, and presented in a table providing a brief description of the policy, alongside how it specifically addresses suicidal CYP.
FINDINGS were further expressed using narrative synthesis.
RESULTS: 35 policy documents were included in the review. Although many recognise CYP as being a high-risk or priority population, most do not explicitly address suicidal CYP. In general, national guidance documents were found to convey that suicidal children should be assessed by a child and adolescent mental health practitioner but offer no clear recommendations beyond this.
CONCLUSION: The lack of specific reference within policy documents to the treatment and care of needs of children who are suicidal highlights a potential gap in policy that could lead to the needs of suicidal children being overlooked, and varying interpretations of appropriate responses and service provision.
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.
Language: en |