Suicide Risk Screening Scales

Abstract

Introduction: The World Health Organization (WHO) defined suicide as a deliberate act performed by a person who is fully aware of, or hopes for, its fatal outcome. According to the WHO, suicide accounts for 804,000 deaths worldwide and was considered a public health problem. However, suicide could be prevented by well-timed, evidence-based and often inexpensive interventions.In Morocco, the WHO estimated suicide rate of 7.3 per 100,000 inhabitants per year in 2019. However, there was a great lack of scientific and epidemiological data on this subject, hence the importance of early screening and psychometric evaluation. Objective: The purpose of our work was to provide the clinician with a non-exhaustive list of different scales used internationally to screen and assess suicidal risk. Method: This review of the literature used the following databases: PubMed science direct psychinfo. We used the following key words: scale, suicide risk screening. Discussion: Of the 9 tools listed above to assess suicidal risk, the two most frequently mentioned and used scales were the: Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation and The Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS), despite the fact that they were not free of charge and had flaws in their structure (Andreotti ET 2020).the MINI suicide risk module (kadri, 2020) was the only validated scale in Arabic, in addition to being brief and free of charge. Other scales are available free of charge, notably the modified SAD PERSON Scale, the DUCHER scale, the suicide probability scale and the P4 screener. Conclusion: This review allowed us to list the screening scales for suicidal risk, in particular the SIDAS, P4, MINI SR module, DUCHER, BSS, CSSRs. The study helped creating a toolbox that might facilitate the task of clinicians in aim of early diagnosis and appropriate care.