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Caring for the Suicidal Person

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Suicide by Self-Immolation

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Abstract

This chapter provides a transcultural perspective of the biological, psychological and social aspects of caring for all suicidal persons, with added emphasis on those at risk for self-immolation. We review the psychiatric literature on the epidemiology of suicide and its prevention in order to guide clinical efforts that properly target persons at risk. We provide a conceptual framework for the care of the suicidal person that includes risk assessment and indicated, selective and universal prevention interventions. Additionally, we describe how suicide protective and predisposing factors vary across and within cultures and explain how psychopharmacotherapeutic and psychosocial interventions need to be culturally informed. Caring for suicidal persons at risk for self-immolation is particularly challenging given the scarcity of resources in low- and middle-income regions of the world. We propose appropriate interventions at a governmental and regional level and discuss how task-shifting and collaborative models of care are essential to bridge gaps in the provision of mental health services for the most vulnerable populations at risk of suicide.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, College of Medicine, University of the Philippines—Philippine General Hospital, Manila, Philippines

    Alma Lucindo Jimenez & Constantine D. Della

  2. Medical Center Manila, Manila, Philippines

    Angeline Monica A. Arcenas

  3. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, University of the Philippines—Philippine General Hospital, Manila, Philippines

    Katrina Therese R. Esling

Authors
  1. Alma Lucindo Jimenez
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  2. Constantine D. Della
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  3. Angeline Monica A. Arcenas
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  4. Katrina Therese R. Esling
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Correspondence to Alma Lucindo Jimenez .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA

    César A. Alfonso

  2. Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health, Bengaluru, India

    Prabha S. Chandra

  3. IPPG, Klinikum der Universität München, Munich, Germany

    Thomas G. Schulze

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Jimenez, A.L., Della, C.D., Arcenas, A.M.A., Esling, K.T.R. (2021). Caring for the Suicidal Person. In: Alfonso, C.A., Chandra, P.S., Schulze, T.G. (eds) Suicide by Self-Immolation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-62613-6_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-62613-6_15

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