IDENTIFICATION OF NEARLY FATAL SUICIDE ATTEMPTS - SELF-INFLICTED INJURY SEVERITY FORM

The Self-Inflicted Injury Severity Form (SIISF) was developed as an ep idemiological research tool for identifying individuals in hospital em ergency departments who have Life-threatening self-inflicted injuries. Data were collected from 715 patients with self-inflicted injuries in two large hospitals. In 295 of these cases, a second set of data was independently collected for assessment of interrater reliability. Vali dity was assessed by comparing the SIISF results with simultaneously c ollected Risk-Rescue Ratings. Assessment of interrater reliability fou nd that only 2.4% of physicians disagreed on the suicide method used. The kappa statistic for method used was .94, indicating excellent agre ement. The SIISF was found to distinguish between severe and less seve re injuries. Thus, it appears to provide a simple method to distinguis h patients who have life-threatening self-inflicted injuries.