People with Schizophrenia at Highest Risk for Suicide

A new study out of Ontario from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences show that people with Schizophrenia account for 12% of those who die by suicide with young people being affected unequally. For those young people who are between the ages of 25-34, one in five will die by suicide compared to the one in ten that the same age group of young people without the diagnosis face. While a link to mental illness is apparent in roughly 90% of all deaths by suicide, it is considered that in those with Schizophrenia the risk of suicide might be different. We can assess these risks by looking at patterns across certain populations.

One important difference stands out in these patterns is that often because of the seriousness of Schizophrenia people with the illness have more contact with the healthcare system. This is reflected in evidence that shows that more than half of people with Schizophrenia sought help roughly thirty days before their deaths. This is compared to the one quarter without the diagnosis who did the same. This data suggests that there is a period where intervention could be useful. Most useful of all are early intervention programs that support people during their first psychotic episode. These programs begin when symptoms of schizophrenia become apparent or likely and support those individuals throughout this period and for some even after. Scientists have found that these early intervention programs seem to be the most effective treatment while their effects tend to be longer lasting.

Preventive treatment often transcends acute care where psychosis is concerned. Supporting those individuals through their first episode and aiding them in accessing treatment allows doctors to negotiate healing. It’s easier for professionals to care for those developing Schizophrenia than it is to care for someone in the throes of chronic Schizophrenia in an acute care situation.

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. (2018, June 22). People with schizophrenia account for more than one in 10 suicide cases: Suicide risk assessments early in the course of illness should be emphasized, researchers say. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 7, 2018 from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180622104709.htm