Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T16:50:16.020Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Antidepressant prescribing prior to suicide: role of doctors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Harm Boer ,
Nick Booth ,
David Russell ,
Roy Powell  and
Martin Briscoe
Harm Boer
Affiliation:
Reaside Clinic, Birmingham B45 9BE
David Russell
Affiliation:
Mount Pleasant Health Centre, Exeter EX4 7BW
Roy Powell
Affiliation:
Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital, Exeter EX2 5DW
Martin Briscoe*
Affiliation:
Wonford House Hospital, Exeter EX2 5AF
*
∗Correspondence
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The pharmacological treatment of depression and the time elapsed since last seen by a doctor were investigated among 507 adults who subsequently killed themselves. The proportion of people consulting a general practitioner or psychiatrist prior to suicide was lower than reported by the British government in the Health of the Nation document. General practitioners prescribed relatively low doses of antidepressants. Nineteen out of the 115 people receiving antidepressants used the drugs to kill themselves. Our findings emphasise the importance of prescribing adequate doses of antidepressants and underline the need for safer prescribing.

Type
Original Papers
Information
Psychiatric Bulletin , Volume 20 , Issue 5 , May 1996 , pp. 282 - 284
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1996

References

Barraclough, B., Bunch, J., Nelson, B., et al (1974) A hundred cases of suicide: clinical aspects. British Journal of Psychiatry, 125, 355–373.Google Scholar
Gunnell, D. & Frankel, S. (1994) Prevention of suicide: aspirations and evidence. British Medical Journal, 306, 1227–1233.Google Scholar
Hawton, K. (1992) By their own young hand. Suicide is increasing rapidly in young men. British Medical Journal 304, 1000.Google Scholar
King, K. & Barraclough, B. (1990) Violent death and mental illness: a study of a single catchment area over eight years. British Journal of Psychiatry, 156, 714–720.Google Scholar
Kragh-S⊘rensen, P. (1993) Pharmacotherapy of the suicidal patient. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 371 (Suppl), 57–59.Google Scholar
Isacsson, G., Holmgren, P., Wasserman, D., et al (1994) Use of antidepressants among people committing suicide in Sweden. British Medical Journal, 308, 506–509.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Matthews, K., Milne, S. & Ashcroft, G. W. (1994) Role of doctors in the prevention of suicide: the final consultation. British Journal of General Practice, 44, 345–348.Google Scholar
Paykel, E. S. & Priest, R. G. (1992) Recognition and management of depression in general practice: consensus statement. British Medical Journal 305, 1198–1202.Google Scholar
Secretary of State for Health (1992) The Health of the Nation: a Strategy for Health in England. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Vassilas, C. A. & Morgan, H. G. (1993) General practitioners' contact with victims of suicide. British Medical Journal 307, 300–301.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.