Psychiatric condition causing admission:
(1) affective disorder (depression, etc.)
(2) schizophrenia
(3) substance abuse
(4) other
Risk factors for suicide:
(1) history of ever being hospitalized for psychiatric disorder (see data in Table 2, page 430)
(2) recent psychiatric hospitalization admission or discharge (highest in first week after admission or after discharge, but risk high for the first 30 days and remains increased for 12 months following a discharge)
(3) hospitalization relatively short (less than median for diagnosis)
(4) combination of (a) female gender, (b) multiple admissions, (c) admission for substance abuse
where:
• A person with multiple psychiatric hospital admissions may have either more severe disease or poor disease control.
• A short hospitalization may correlate with inadequate disease control prior to discharge.
A person with a psychiatric disorder severe enough to be hospitalized should be assessed for suicide risk, aggressively treated if suicidal, and closely monitored for the first month after hospital discharge.
