DELIBERATE SELF-HARM ASSESSMENT BY ACCIDENT AND EMERGENCY STAFF - AN INTERVENTION STUDY

Objective-To examine the impact of specific training for accident and emergency (A&E) staff on the quality of psychosocial assessment of del iberate self harm patients. Methods-A non-randomised intervention stud y that compared the psychosocial assessment of deliberate self harm pa tients before and after a one hour teaching session for the A&B depart ments nursing and junior medical staff. Adequacy of psychosocial asses sment was judged by examining A&E case states, The records of the hosp ital's parasuicide team were examined to assess administrative changes . Staff attitude to and knowledge of deliberate self harm were also me asured before and after the intervention. Results-45 of 52 nurses and all 15 junior medical staff attended the teaching session, Sixteen (13 %) of 125 sets of records before and 58 (46%) of 127 sets of records a fter the intervention were judged to be adequate. In the postintervent ion period, notes were more likely to be judged adequate when a profor ma was used as part of the assessment (52 of 66 with a proforma and si x of 61 without a proforma, chi(2) = 60, p < 0,01), Following the inte rvention, communication between A&E staff and the hospitals parasuicid e team improved. Conclusions-An intervention that provides teaching to A&E staff can lead to improvements in the quality of psychosocial ass essment of patients with deliberate self harm.