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Abstract
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A 16 year old girl visits her general practitioner (GP) with her mother and describes how she is being bullied at school and how she has felt more anxious as a result. The GP notices a cut on her left wrist.
A 23 year old man is brought into the emergency department by paramedics after taking an overdose of paracetamol at home a few hours earlier.
In both cases, the doctor wants to know how to adequately assess the self-harm episode and how best to help the young person.
Self-harm and suicide in young people are growing and serious public health concerns. Young people can present with self-harm or suicidal thoughts in all clinical contexts. However, the frontline settings of general practice and emergency care allow for early identification and intervention. Managing self-harm or suicidal thoughts in young people is a daily reality for many GPs and non-mental health clinicians. In this practice pointer, we outline how GPs and non-mental health clinicians can assess and manage young people aged 12-25 after self-harm or suicidal thoughts. Our approach is informed by the 2022 National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline for managing self-harm.1
How common is self-harm and suicide in young people?
The NICE definition of self-harm is intentional self-poisoning or injury irrespective of the apparent purpose.1 This definition encompasses self-harm with or without suicidal intent and examples of self-harm include cutting, medication overdose, burning, or hair pulling.2
Self-harm is common among young people, with a pooled 17% lifetime prevalence of self-harm in adolescents aged 12-18.3 Self-cutting is the most common (45%) type of self-harm, followed by head …
Language: en |