Open AccessHearing the Suicidal Patient's Emotional Pain
Author(s) -
Christine Dunkley,
Alan Borthwick,
Ruth A. Bartlett,
Laura Dunkley,
Stephen Palmer,
Stefan Gleeson,
David Kingdon
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
crisis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.93
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 2151-2396
pISSN - 0227-5910
DOI - 10.1027/0227-5910/a000497
Subject(s) - health professionals , mental health , psychological pain , emotional health , medicine , focus group , psychology , health care , psychiatry , clinical psychology , business , marketing , economics , economic growth
. Background: Escaping from emotional pain is a recognized driver in suicidal patients' desire to die. Formal scales of emotional pain are rarely used during routine contact between patients and their care team. No study has explored facilitators and inhibitors of emotional pain communication between staff and suicidal patients during regular care. Aims: To identify factors impeding or facilitating emotional pain communication between patients at risk of suicide and mental health professionals. Method: Nine patients with a history of a medically serious suicide attempt and 26 mental health (NHS) staff participated in individualized and focus group interviews, respectively. Results: A typological model was created, describing how patients either speak out or inhibit communication, and professionals may hear the communication or fail to do so. Four permutations are possible: unspoken/unheard, spoken/unheard, spoken/heard, and unspoken/heard. We found 14 subthemes of impediments and facilitators, which include misaligned, alienated and, co-bearing. Limitations: No male patients participated. Conclusion: Numerous factors influence whether emotional pain communication is responded to, missed, or ignored. Patients may try more than one way to communicate. Some patients fear that being able to speak out results in their emotional pain being taken less seriously. Knowledge of this model should improve the care of suicidal patients.