YOUTH SUICIDE-RELATED VISITS IN AN EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT SERVING RURALCOUNTIES - IMPLICATIONS FOR MEANS RESTRICTION

A large proportion of suicide attempts result in injuries requiring me dical attention, but little is known about youth presenting to rural e mergency departments (EDs) for suicide-related behavior. We conducted a chart review of youth receiving mental health (MH) evaluations durin g 1994 in an ED serving rural counties. Forty percent of the these vis its were for suicide-related events. These youth were more likely to b e older, female and white than youth receiving MH evaluations for reas ons not related to suicide. No differences were found on recent substa nce use, non-suicidal aggression, or MH service contact when comparing suicidal to non-suicidal youth. Youth receiving MH evaluations were h omogenous with respect to suicide risk factors. Chart reviews provided no evidence that means restriction education was provided. We discuss broader implications of these findings for the role of means restrict ion in EDs.