A study on the pattern of attempted suicides, registered at the district Child Protection Unit of Teaching Hospital Batticaloa, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Suicide is a significant global health issue and one of the leading causes of deaths worldwide, as well as in Sri Lanka. Many determinants like social, economic, cultural, and psychological aspects, and the methods of suicide influence the suicide rate of a country. Hence, it is important to gain a broad knowledge of vulnerable groups, common methods, and influencing factors of suicide to develop effective prevention strategies. The objective of the study is to assess the pattern of attempted suicides that are, registered at the District Child Protection Unit of Teaching Hospital Batticaloa, Sri Lanka. This cross-sectional study was conducted by analyzing all recorded data from suicide attempted cases at the District Child Protection Unit, Teaching Hospital Batticaloa registered from January to December 2023. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze socio-demographic characteristics, method of suicide attempt, and; influencing factors. Chi-square was used to determine the association of sociodemographic factors with method of suicidal attempt, and influencing factors. The majority of suicide attempters were female (53%), aged between 16-25 years (52.7%), Hindu (88%), Tamil (90.6%), and education level between grades 6-10 (39.7%). Around half of them were single (49.8%) and unemployed (59.9%). Regarding methods of suicide, plant poisoning (33%), drug overdose (28.6%), self-injury (20.7%), and chemical poisoning (17.8%) were the other most used suicide methods respectively. Influencing factors for suicide were, conflict with others (67.6%), financial-related problems (20.8%), social and emotional problems (8.9%), and health-related problems (2.7%). There were significant associations found among sociodemographic factors and the method of suicide (age: P=0.000; gender: P=0.000; religion: P=0.015; ethnicity: P=0.008; civil status: P=0.001; educational level: P=0.003; occupation: P=0.000). Further, there was a statistically significant association among age (P=0.000), gender (P=0.001), civil status (P=0.000), educational level (P=0.000), and occupation (P=0.000) with influencing factors. Being female, very young aged, Hindu, Tamil, low educational levels, and unemployed, are the main sociodemographic factors among suicidal attempts. Conflicts with others and financial problems are the predominant factors influencing suicide across different age groups and genders. Males primarily reported conflicts with others, while females reported this issue more frequently. Financial problems were significant among individuals with lower education levels and increased with age from 36-65 years, reaching a peak among those above 65 years (50%). The most common methods of suicide included plant poisoning and drug overdose. These findings show that various social, economic, and demographic factors play a significant role in suicide attempts.