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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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A study of self-harm in older people
— mental disorder, social factors and motives | | Author(s) | M S Dennis, P Wakefield, C Molloy |
| Journal title | Aging & Mental Health, vol 11, no 5, September 2007 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis, September 2007 |
| Pages | pp 520-525 |
| Source | http://www.tandfonline.com |
| Keywords | Suicide ; Mental disorder ; Depression ; Social characteristics [elderly] ; Social surveys. |
| Annotation | Data were collected on 76 older people who presented to a specialist self-harm team. Data collected included: diagnosis, suicide intent, motives for self-harm, social contacts, and life events and difficulties. Most of these older people who harmed themselves had high suicide intent and 69% were depressed. Patients were frequently living alone with an isolated lifestyle and poor physical health. Depressed self-harm subjects had higher suicide mean scores than non-depressed; and to gain relief from an unbearable state of mind was a frequently recorded motive for these patients. Other motives for self-harm appear to be similar between depressed and non-depressed self-harmers. It is important that older people who self-harm receive an appropriate assessment of both risk and need by an experienced mental health professional skilled at recognising depression in later life. The need for adequate recognition and management of depression in older people in primary care is also highlighted. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-080327205 A |
| Classmark | EV: E: ENR: F: 3F |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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