Abstract
One of the true psychiatric emergencies occurs when a patient is suicidal. The suicidal patient should always be evaluated by a psychiatrist; however, there are times when no psychiatrist is immediately available, and some decision must be made as to the potential suicide risk of the patient. Generally, there are three types of patients that will present to the emergency room as suicide risks:
-
A.
The first type will present with a chief complaint of suicidal thoughts without any overt gesture.
-
B.
The second and most common type of patient presents with a suicide gesture in which he has not intended to kill himself but is acting in such a way as to attract attention or to “get back at someone.” There is a tendency for physicians to take these patients lightly. However, these patients frequently will make another gesture and may kill themselves by mistake.
-
C.
The third type of suicide attempt is made by patients with true suicidal intent who were saved only unusual intervention.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bellak, L. and Small, L. Emergency Psychotherapy and Brief Psychotherapy, 2nd edition. Grune and Stratton, New York, 1978.
Farberow, N.L. and Schneidman, E.S. The Cry for Help. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1965.
McKinnon, Roger A. and Michels, Robert. The Psychiatric Interview in Clinical Practice. W.B. Saunders, Philadelphia, 1971.
Schneidman, E.S. Psychotherapy with Suicidal Patients, Chapter 16 in Specialized Techniques in Individual Psychotherapy, edited by T.B. Karasu and L. Bellak. Brunner/Mazel, New York, 1980.
Sletten, I.W. and Barton, J.L. Suicidal Patients in the Emergency Room: A Guide for Evaluation and Disposition. Hospital and Community Psychiatry, V. 30, June, 1979, pp. 407–411.
Weiss, J.M.A. Suicide, Chapter 33 in American Handbook of Psychiatry III, edited by Silvano Arieti and Eugene B. Brody. Basic Books, New York, 1974, pp. 743–765.
Wolberg, L.R. The Technique of Psychotherapy, Parts 1 and 2, 2nd edition. Grune and Stratton, New York, 1967.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1981 Spectrum Publications, Inc.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Dubin, W.R., Stolberg, R. (1981). The Suicidal Patient. In: Emergency Psychiatry for the House Officer. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6690-4_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6690-4_7
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-85200-580-4
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-6690-4
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive