Why We Need to Enhance Suicide Postvention

Abstract

Suicide prevention efforts are increasing to enhance capabilities and better understand risk factors and etiologies. Postvention, or how clinicians manage the postsuicide aftermath, strengthens suicide prevention, destigmatizes the tragedy, operationalizes the confusing aftermath, and promotes caregiver recovery. However, studies regarding its efficacy are minimal. The Psychopathology Committee of the Group for the Advancement for Psychiatry surveyed a convenience sample of psychiatrists to better understand postvention activities. Ninety psychiatrists completed the survey; they were predominantly men (72%) with an average of 24.6 years of experience (SD, 16.7 years). Most had contact with the patient’s family within 6 months of the suicide, and most psychiatrists sought some form of support. Few psychiatrists used a suicide postvention procedure or toolkit (9%). No psychiatrists stopped clinical practice after a patient suicide, although 10% stopped accepting patients they deemed at risk of suicide. Postvention efforts, therefore, should be improved to better address survivor care.

Bearing witness: A grounded theory of the experiences of staff at two United Kingdom Higher Education Institutions following a student death by suicide

“…Some participants reported that they chose not to engage with support that was offered, despite feeling unsupported. Similar inconsistencies in accessing support even when it is available have been reported for those who are bereaved following suicide [ 49 , 50 ] and amongst practitioners [ 7 , 51 ]. This may in part be aligned with broader beliefs regarding mental health help-seeking.…”

Supporting Providers After Drug Overdose Death

“…A study based on structured interviews of 20 therapists who had a patient suicide in their practice (29) found that 85% were much more direct in their assessment of suicidality after they had a suicide in their practice. Countertransference reactions described in the literature that can arise when continuing to work with suicidal patients include being overly protective and conservative in assessing risk, avoiding discussing suicidality, or avoiding patients at risk for suicide (22–24, 30).…”

Responding to a Tragedy: Evaluation of a Postvention Protocol Among Adult Psychiatry Residents

“…Indices were computed by summing item responses and dividing by the total number of items. Items created were consistent with previous research describing supports utilized by psychiatrists following patient suicide [ 22 ].…”