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Staff Perceptions of Care for Deliberate Self‐Harm Patients in Rural Western Australia: A Qualitative Study
Author(s) -
Slaven Janine,
Kisely Stephen
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
australian journal of rural health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.48
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1440-1584
pISSN - 1038-5282
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1584.2002.00487.x
Subject(s) - harm , nursing , metropolitan area , occupational safety and health , suicide prevention , qualitative research , medicine , multidisciplinary approach , poison control , mental health , rural health , content analysis , family medicine , rural area , psychology , medical emergency , psychiatry , political science , sociology , social psychology , law , social science , pathology
Suicide has been a major community concern in Esperance, a geographically isolated port on the south coast of Western Australia. This study to explores the views of regional health staff on barriers to the effective management of deliberate self‐harm (DSH) and ways in which those barriers could be addressed. Semi‐structured interviews were tape‐recorded, transcribed and subjected to qualitative content analysis. Interviewees included 77% of general practitioners ( n = 7), 18% of nurses ( n = 13) and 55% of mental health professionals ( n = 5). The most important barrier was a lack of structure to treating DSH, resulting in deficiencies and inconsistencies in its management. Suggestions to improve the management of DSH included better communication between services, support for nurses in raising the issue of suicide, use of a simple risk assessment tool, the development of a nurse liaison position, and a multidisciplinary planning group. The higher rates of DSH and completed suicide in rural and remote regions compared with metropolitan areas make secondary prevention particularly important.