Abstract
Suicide is a direct purposeful action taken by a person to end his own life. The person who is suicidal demonstrates a wide range of moods, perceptions and behaviours; at one extreme, a person may attempt suicide on impulse and, at the other, he may meticulously plan his own death (Soreff, 1981). A person’s aim may be actual self-destruction, or he may be attempting to bring about some change in his life; he may wish to hurt someone, perhaps a friend, parent or lover (Hoff, 1978). Self-destruction may be seen as the only way to escape from feelings of hopelessness, helplessness or what are perceived as insurmountable problems.
‘Communication is critical to the prevention of suicide. If there is no amnesty from stress and anxiety, the time may come in life when the client thinks nothing helps—nothing heals.’ (Collins, 1983).
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References and Further Reading
References
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Further reading
Divasto, P. V., West, D. A., and Christy, J. E. (1979), A framework for the emergency evaluation of the suicidal patient, Journal of Psychiatric Nursing and Mental Health Services, 17, No. 6, 15–20.
Fallon, B. (1972), And certain thoughts go through my head, American Journal of Nursing, 72, 1257–1259.
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© 1987 Peggy Martin and the Individual Contributors
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Martin, P. (1987). Nursing care of the person who is suicidal. In: Martin, P. (eds) Psychiatric Nursing. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-09408-0_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-09408-0_13
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