Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T17:49:02.315Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Accident and Emergency Department Management of Deliberate Self-Poisoning

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

David W. Owens  and
Susan J. Jones
David W. Owens*
Affiliation:
Mapperley Hospital, Nottingham, University of Leeds
Susan J. Jones
Affiliation:
Nottingham Psychiatric Case Register, currently Lecturer in General Practice, University of Nottingham
*
∗University of Leeds, Department of Psychiatry, 15 Hyde Terrace, Leeds LS2 9LT
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Consecutive attenders (525) presenting at the Nottingham Accident and Emergency (A & E) department with deliberate self-poisoning were identified retrospectively. Their case-notes were examined for patient characteristics and clinical management. The Nottingham Psychiatric Case Register was examined for previous contact and use of psychiatric services over a 2-year follow-up period. Significant differences were found between those patients admitted to a ward and those who returned home from the A & E Department, in respect of likelihood of psychiatric morbidity and use of psychiatric services. One in three self-poisoning patients returns home directly from the accident department, and there seemed to be appropriate selection.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 152 , Issue 6 , June 1988 , pp. 830 - 833
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1988 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Barraclough, B., Bunch, J., Nelson, B. & Sainsbury, P. (1974) A hundred cases of suicide: clinical aspects. British Journal of Psychiatry, 125, 355–373.Google Scholar
Blake, D. R. & Bramble, M. G. (1979) Self-poisoning: psychiatric assessment by junior staff. British Medical Journal, i, 1763.Google Scholar
Blake, D. R. & Mitchell, J. R. A. (1978) Self-poisoning: management of patients in Nottingham. British Medical Journal, i, 1032–1035.Google Scholar
Buglass, D. & Horton, J. (1974) A scale for predicting subsequent suicidal behaviour. British Journal of Psychiatry, 124, 573–578.Google Scholar
Catalan, J., Marsack, P., Hawton, K. E., Whitwell, D., Fagg, J. & Bancroft, J. H. J. (1980) Comparison of doctors and nurses in assessment of deliberate self-poisoning patients. Psychological Medicine, 10, 483–491.Google Scholar
Department, of Health and Social Security (1984) The Management of Deliberate Self Harm. Health Notice HN(84): 25. London: DHSS Google Scholar
Gardner, R. (1980) Management of patients after self-poisoning. British Medical Journal, ii, 1562.Google Scholar
Gardner, R. & Hanka, R. (1979) Cheaper care of parasuicides. British Journal of Psychiatry, 135, 484–485.Google Scholar
Gardner, R., Hanka, R., Evison, B., Mountford, P. M., O'Brien, V. C. & Roberts, S. J. (1978) Consultation-liaison scheme for self-poisoned patients in a general hospital. British Medical Journal, ii, 1392–1394.Google Scholar
Gardner, R., Hanka, R., O'Brien, V. C., Page, A. J. F. & Rees, R. (1977) Psychological and social evaluation in cases of deliberate self-poisoning admitted to a general hospital. British Medical Journal, ii, 1567–1570.Google Scholar
Gardner, R., Hanka, R., Roberts, S. J., Allon-Smith, J. M., Kings, A. A. & Nicholson, R. (1982) Psychological and social evaluation in cases of deliberate self-poisoning seen in an accident department. British Medical Journal, i, 491–493.Google Scholar
Hawton, K. E. & Catalan, J. (1981) Psychiatric management of attempted suicide patients. British Journal of Hospital Medicine, 25, 365–372.Google ScholarPubMed
Hawton, K. E. & Catalan, J. (1982) Attempted suicide. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Joint Sub-committees of the Standing Medical Advisory Committee (1968) Hospital treatment of acute poisoning. London, HMSO.Google Scholar
Jones, D. I. R. (1977) Self-poisoning with drugs: the past 20 years in Sheffield. British Medical Journal, i, 28–29.Google Scholar
Kreitman, N. (1980) Services for parasuicide and the place of a poisonings unit In The Suicide Syndrome (eds Farmer, R. & Hirsch, S. R.) pp. 259–261. London: Croom Helm.Google Scholar
Linter, C. M. (1985) Psychiatric involvement in cases of deliberate self-harm. British Journal of Social and Clinical Psychiatry, 3, 11–15.Google Scholar
MacMillan, D. (1970) The function of the Nottingham Register In Psychiatric Case Registers (eds Wing, J. K. & Bransby, E. R.) pp. 13–14. Department of Health and Social Security Statistical Report Series No. 8. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Ministry of Health (1961) Attempted Suicide. HM(61): 94. London: Ministry of Health.Google Scholar
Morgan, H. G., Burns-Cox, C. J., Pocock, H. & Pottle, S. (1975) Deliberate self-harm: clinical and socio-economic characteristics of 368 patients. British Journal of Psychiatry, 127, 564–574.Google Scholar
Newson-Smith, J. G. B. & Hirsch, S. R. (1979) Psychiatric symptoms in self-poisoning patients. Psychological Medicine, 9, 493–500.Google Scholar
Pallis, D. J., Levey, A. B., Jenkins, J. S. & Sainsbury, P. (1982) Estimating suicide risk among attempted suicides: 1. The development of new clinical scales. British Journal of Psychiatry, 141, 37–44.Google Scholar
Sainsbury, P. (1973) Suicide: opinions and facts. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine, 66, 579–587.Google Scholar
Tuckman, J. & Youngman, W. F. (1968) A scale for assessing suicide risk of attempted suicide. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 24, 17–19.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.