Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jkksz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-24T04:31:58.559Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Ethnic Differences in Self-poisoning

A Comparison of West Indian and White Groups

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

John Merrill  and
John Owens
John Merrill*
Affiliation:
Academic Unit, All Saints Hospital
John Owens
Affiliation:
All Saints Hospital and West Midlands Poisons Unit, Dudley Road Hospital, University of Birmingham
*
All Saints Hospital, Lodge Road, Winson Green, Birmingham B18 5SD
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The characteristics of West Indian patients admitted to a Birmingham hospital following deliberate self-poisoning were compared with those of White self-poisoners. West Indian patients were more likely to be young, female and single. They were less likely to have previously self-poisoned, have received previous psychiatric treatment, or be suffering from a personality disorder or alcoholism, but were more often followed-up by a social worker. Rates of self-poisoning for those aged under 25 were similar but for those aged over 25 were lower for West Indians than Whites.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 150 , Issue 6 , June 1987 , pp. 765 - 768
Copyright
Copyright © 1987 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bagley, C. & Greer, S. (1972) ‘Black suicide’: a report on 25 English cases and controls. Journal of Social Psychology, 86, 175–179.Google Scholar
Baker, F. M. (1984) Black suicide attempters in 1980: a preventative focus. General Hospital Psychiatry, 6, 131–137.Google Scholar
Burke, A. W. (1974) Socio-cultural determinants of attempted suicide among women in Trinidad and Tobago. British Journal of Psychiatry, 116, 489–491.Google Scholar
Baker, F. M. (1976a) Attempted suicide among the Irish-born population in Birmingham. British Journal of Psychiatry, 128, 534–537.Google Scholar
Baker, F. M. (1976b) Socio-cultural determinants of attempted suicide among West Indians in Birmingham: Ethnic origin and immigrant status. British Journal of Psychiatry, 129, 261–266.Google Scholar
Joint Working Party on Pregnant Schoolgirls and Schoolgirl Mothers, (1979) Pregnant at School. London: National Council for One Parent Families.Google Scholar
Merrill, J. & Owens, J. (1986) Ethnic differences in self-poisoning: a comparison of Asian and White groups. British Journal of Psychiatry, 148, 708–712.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Office of Population Censuses & Surveys (OPCS) (1970) Classification of Occupations. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Office of Population Censuses & Surveys (1981a) Census 1981. County Report – West Midlands. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Office of Population Censuses & Surveys (1981b) Census 1981. Small area statistics. London: HMSO.Google Scholar
Pederson, A. M., Awad, G. A. & Kindler, A. R. (1973) Epidemiological differences between white and nonwhite suicide attempters. American Journal of Psychiatry, 130, 1071–1076.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tardiff, K., Sweillam, A. & Jacque, C. (1981) Suicide and race. Journal of Psychiatric Treatment and Evaluation, 3, 275–278.Google Scholar
Wright, N., Trethowan, W. N. & Owens, J. (1981) Ethnic differences in self-poisoning. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 57, 792–793.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.