Citation

Albuixech-García R, Juliá-Sanchis R, Fernández Molina MÁ, Escribano S. Issues Ment. Health Nurs. 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Nursing Department, Health Science Faculty, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/01612840.2019.1692979

PMID

32255409

Abstract

Poor coordination between different healthcare services means that the proper follow-up of patients cannot be guaranteed, thus increasing the risk of relapse in cases of attempted suicide. This study describes the sociodemographic variables related to suicidal behaviour in a Spanish sample and analyses how the use of a continued nursing care protocol influences the follow-up of patients who have shown suicidal behaviour. A cohort of 213 patient was identified from the emergency department medical records because of suicide attempters during 2011; 51.6% were included in the intervention group (n = 110) and 48.4% (n = 103) in the control group. We used a specific continuity of care chain protocol with the patients in the intervention group. More than half of all the initial suicide attempts were made by women; 80.3% had a previous history of a mental disorder and 65.7% of the attempts were made by ingesting medications. Significantly more patients in the intervention group attended their first follow-up visit. This study highlights the need to implement protocols that favour the continuity of mental health care processes-especially those designed to treat individuals expressing suicidal behaviour-with the aim of reducing the risk of suicide in them by intensifying their monitoring.

Language: en