An urgent call for measures to fight against increasing suicides during COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal

Singh, Rakesh Kumar; Baral, Kedar Prasad; Mahato, Sharika

doi:10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102259

Cited by 23 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…The four reports from Nepal (Acharya et al, 2020;Pokhrel et al, 2021;Poudel & Subedi, 2020;Singh et al, 2020) were all based on news reports of police data on suicides, rather than on data obtained directly from Nepalese authorities and did not describe the strengths and weakness of the police data. They report between a 20% (Poudel & Subedi, 2020) and 35% (Acharya et al, 2020) rise in suicide in the first 3 months after lockdown compared with either preceding months or a similar period the previous year.…”

Section: Summary Of Studies' Findings: Service Utilisation Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-harm and suicidal behaviour: update of living systematic review

et al. 2021

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused considerable morbidity, mortality and disruption to people’s lives around the world. There are concerns that rates of suicide and suicidal behaviour may rise during and in its aftermath. Our living systematic review synthesises findings from emerging literature on incidence and prevalence of suicidal behaviour as well as suicide prevention efforts in relation to COVID-19, with this iteration synthesising relevant evidence up to 19th October 2020. Method: Automated daily searches feed into a web-based database with screening and data extraction functionalities. Eligibility criteria include incidence/prevalence of suicidal behaviour, exposure-outcome relationships and effects of interventions in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Outcomes of interest are suicide, self-harm or attempted suicide and suicidal thoughts. No restrictions are placed on language or study type, except for single-person case reports. We exclude one-off cross-sectional studies without either pre-pandemic measures or comparisons of COVID-19 positive vs. unaffected individuals. Results: Searches identified 6,226 articles. Seventy-eight articles met our inclusion criteria. We identified a further 64 relevant cross-sectional studies that did not meet our revised inclusion criteria. Thirty-four articles were not peer-reviewed (e.g. research letters, pre-prints). All articles were based on observational studies. There was no consistent evidence of a rise in suicide but many studies noted adverse economic effects were evolving. There was evidence of a rise in community distress, fall in hospital presentation for suicidal behaviour and early evidence of an increased frequency of suicidal thoughts in those who had become infected with COVID-19. Conclusions: Research evidence of the impact of COVID-19 on suicidal behaviour is accumulating rapidly. This living review provides a regular synthesis of the most up-to-date research evidence to guide public health and clinical policy to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on suicide risk as the longer term impacts of the pandemic on suicide risk are researched.

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Section: Summary Of Studies' Findings: Service Utilisation Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-harm and suicidal behaviour: update of living systematic review

et al. 2021

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“…Several publications from Nepal have summarised media reporting of official (police data) suicide death statistics (12, 22, 38-40), and we hereby present the evidence from the most comprehensive publication (12). The original data source was not accessible, but the report indicates that there were 20% more suicide deaths during the first month of the pandemic compared to a pre-pandemic period.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suicide and self-harm in low- and middle- income countries during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

Knipe

John

Padmanathan

et al. 2021

Preprint

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There is widespread concern over the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide and self-harm globally, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where the burden of these behaviours is greatest. We synthesised the evidence from the published literature on the impact of the pandemic on suicide and self-harm in LMIC. This review is nested within a living systematic review that continuously identifies published evidence (all languages) through a comprehensive automated search of multiple databases (PubMed; Scopus; medRxiv, PsyArXiv; SocArXiv; bioRxiv; the WHO COVID-19 database; and the COVID-19 Open Research Dataset by Semantic Scholar (up to 11/2020), including data from Microsoft Academic, Elsevier, arXiv and PubMed Central.) All articles identified by the 4th August 2021 were screened. Papers reporting on data from a LMIC and presenting evidence on the impact of the pandemic on suicide or self-harm were included. A total of 22 studies from LMIC were identified representing data from 12 countries. There was an absence of data from Africa. The reviewed studies mostly report on the early months of COVID-19 and were generally methodologically poor. Few studies directly assessed the impact of the pandemic. The most robust evidence, from time-series studies, indicate either a reduction or no change in suicide and self-harm behaviour. As LMIC continue to experience repeated waves of the virus and increased associated mortality, against a backdrop of vaccine inaccessibility and limited welfare support, continued efforts are needed to track the indirect impact of the pandemic on suicide and self-harm in these countries.

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“…COVID-19 has demonstrated the potential for mental health risks to emerge as a result of both disaster-related trauma and the public health safety measures implemented to reduce transmission. This has been highlighted in Nepal, where widespread job loss and economic insecurity arising from government lockdown measures during the pandemic has resulted in a tragic spike in suicides, with 1200 deaths reported due to suicide during the 74 day lockdown [ 70 , 71 ]. Established mental health services in Nepal are working to provide helpline services through telephone and social media and further improve the capacity of community psychosocial workers to respond to individuals experiencing psychological distress [ 42 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Asia Pacific Disaster Mental Health Network: Setting a Mental Health Agenda for the Region

Newnham

Dzidic

Mergelsberg

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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Addressing the psychological mechanisms and structural inequalities that underpin mental health issues is critical to recovery following disasters and pandemics. The Asia Pacific Disaster Mental Health Network was established in June 2020 in response to the current disaster climate and to foster advancements in disaster-oriented mental health research, practice and policy across the region. Supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) Thematic Platform for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management (Health EDRM), the network brings together leading disaster psychiatry, psychology and public health experts. Our aim is to advance policy, research and targeted translation of the evidence so that communities are better informed in preparation and response to disasters, pandemics and mass trauma. The first meetings of the network resulted in the development of a regional disaster mental health agenda focused on the current context, with five priority areas: (1) Strengthening community engagement and the integration of diverse perspectives in planning, implementing and evaluating mental health and psychosocial response in disasters; (2) Supporting and assessing the capacity of mental health systems to respond to disasters; (3) Optimising emerging technologies in mental healthcare; (4) Understanding and responding appropriately to addressing the mental health impacts of climate change; (5) Prioritising mental health and psychosocial support for high-risk groups. Consideration of these priority areas in future research, practice and policy will support nuanced and effective psychosocial initiatives for disaster-affected populations within the Asia Pacific region.

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An urgent call for measures to fight against increasing suicides during COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal

Cited by 23 publications

References 6 publications

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-harm and suicidal behaviour: update of living systematic review

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-harm and suicidal behaviour: update of living systematic review

Suicide and self-harm in low- and middle- income countries during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

The Asia Pacific Disaster Mental Health Network: Setting a Mental Health Agenda for the Region

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