Installation of a Bridge Barrier as a Suicide Prevention Strategy in Montréal, Québec, Canada

Perron, Stéphane; Burrows, Stephanie; Fournier, Michel; Perron, Paul-André; Ouellet, François

doi:10.2105/ajph.2012.301089

Cited by 32 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 17 publications

(16 reference statements)

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“…They are consistent with previously published studies [16, 17, 14, 25, 12, 15, 26, 8, 13]. It has been unclear though if earlier meta-analyses and individual case studies exhibit a publication bias.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…However, the majority of the studies focus on barriers that hinder persons from climbing over. Examples include the Memorial Bridge in Augusta, Maine, U.S.A. [12]; the Bloor Street Viaduct in Toronto, Canada [13]; Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol, England [14]; the Jacques-Cartier Bridge in Montréal, Canada [15]; and the Grafton Bridge in Auckland, New Zealand [16, 17]. The barriers have reduced the number of suicides at these sites.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Yet, the height of a barrier is not the only criterion that contributes to the effectiveness of a structure. Some of the barriers examined tend to angle slightly inward toward their top ends [17, 15, 13]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Comparing Different Suicide Prevention Measures at Bridges and Buildings: Lessons We Have Learned from a National Survey in Switzerland

Hemmer¹,

Meier²,

Reisch

2017

PLoS ONE

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The goal of the study was to compare the effectiveness of different suicide prevention measures implemented on bridges and other high structures in Switzerland. A national survey identified all jumping hotspots that have been secured in Switzerland; of the 15 that could be included in this study, 11 were secured by vertical barriers and 4 were secured by low-hanging horizontal safety nets. The study made an overall and individual pre-post analysis by using Mantel-Haenszel Tests, regression methods and calculating rate ratios. Barriers and safety nets were both effective, with mean suicide reduction of 68.7% (barriers) and 77.1% (safety nets), respectively. Measures that do not secure the whole hotspot and still allow jumps of 15 meters or more were less effective. Further, the analyses revealed that barriers of at least 2.3 m in height and safety-nets fixed significantly below pedestrian level deterred suicidal jumps. Secured bridgeheads and inbound angle barriers seemed to enhance the effectiveness of the measure. Findings can help to plan and improve the effectiveness of future suicide prevention measures on high structures.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Comparing Different Suicide Prevention Measures at Bridges and Buildings: Lessons We Have Learned from a National Survey in Switzerland

Hemmer¹,

Meier²,

Reisch

2017

PLoS ONE

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“…Physical barriers are effective in reducing suicides at particular jumping sites, although evidence regarding displacement of suicides to other sites remains inconclusive. [41][42][43][44] Preventing access to the means of suicide does not, however, address individual psychological distress. Other interventions, such as depression screening and treatment, are likely to be important for reducing high suicide rates in urban and rural areas.…”

Section: Implications For Research and Preventionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leading Causes of Unintentional Injury and Suicide Mortality in Canadian Adults across the Urban-Rural Continuum

Burrows

Auger²,

Gamache

et al. 2013

Public Health Rep

Self Cite

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Objective. We examined the leading causes of unintentional injury and suicide mortality in adults across the urban-rural continuum.Methods. Injury mortality data were drawn from a representative cohort of 2,735,152 Canadians aged 25 years at baseline, who were followed for mortality from 1991 to 2001. We estimated hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals for urban-rural continuum and cause-specific unintentional injury (i.e., motor vehicle, falls, poisoning, drowning, suffocation, and fire/burn) and suicide (i.e., hanging, poisoning, firearm, and jumping) mortality, adjusting for socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.Results. Rates of unintentional injury mortality were elevated in less urbanized areas for both males and females. We found an urban-rural gradient for motor vehicle, drowning, and fire/burn deaths, but not for fall, poisoning, or suffocation deaths. Urban-rural differences in suicide risk were observed for males but not females. Declining urbanization was associated with higher risks of firearm suicides and lower risks of jumping suicides, but there was no apparent trend in hanging and poisoning suicides.Conclusion. Urban-rural gradients in adults were more pronounced for unintentional motor vehicle, drowning, and fire/burn deaths, as well as for firearm and jumping suicide deaths than for other causes of injury mortality. These results suggest that the degree of urbanization may be an important consideration in guiding prevention efforts for many causes of injury fatality.

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“…It took over 1500 deaths before San Francisco decided to address the issue of suicide by jumping off of the Golden Gate Bridge [6]. Studies have shown that suicide barriers effectively reduce the rate of suicides by jumping with no associated increase in suicide by other means [7][8][9]. The Coronado Bridge is the site of over 400 suicides; do we really need to wait for 1100 more people to end their lives before we take definitive action?…”

Section: Beautiful Blue Bridgementioning

confidence: 99%

Blue Bridge

Soltani

Wastila

2018

Acad Psychiatry

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Installation of a Bridge Barrier as a Suicide Prevention Strategy in Montréal, Québec, Canada

Abstract: Little or no displacement to other jumping sites may occur after installation of a barrier at an iconic site such as Jacques-Cartier Bridge. A barrier's design is important to its effectiveness and should be considered for new bridges with the potential to become symbolic suicide sites.

Cited by 32 publications

References 17 publications

Comparing Different Suicide Prevention Measures at Bridges and Buildings: Lessons We Have Learned from a National Survey in Switzerland

Comparing Different Suicide Prevention Measures at Bridges and Buildings: Lessons We Have Learned from a National Survey in Switzerland

Leading Causes of Unintentional Injury and Suicide Mortality in Canadian Adults across the Urban-Rural Continuum

Blue Bridge

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