Premium
Is Veteran Status and Suicide Risk Assessed in Community Long‐Term Care? A Review of the States' Assessment Instruments
Author(s) -
Matthieu Monica M.,
Welch Benjamin,
MorrowHowell Nancy,
Proctor Enola,
Bruno Frank J.,
Nickel Michael,
Navarro Jessica,
Moon Alyson
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
suicide and life‐threatening behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.544
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1943-278X
pISSN - 0363-0234
DOI - 10.1521/suli.2010.40.2.125
Subject(s) - gerontology , suicide prevention , long term care , risk assessment , medicine , occupational safety and health , term (time) , poison control , psychology , psychiatry , environmental health , computer security , pathology , computer science , physics , quantum mechanics
Given recent policy initiatives to address suicide risk among older persons and veterans, community‐based elder serving agencies may serve an important role in identifying and referring individuals at risk for suicide. A review of state‐level long‐term assessment instruments was conducted to determine whether veteran status and suicide are assessed. Data from forty‐three state's Units on Aging instruments were content analyzed. Results indicate that over two thirds of the states in this review included questions about suicide and veterans in their assessments, 69.8% and 67.4% respectively. Suicide risk among elders and veterans must be addressed at local, state, and federal levels so that concerted attention and oversight can be provided for matching elders to the services they need.