Self-poisoning

I read with interest the recent article by Leslie et al (Psychiatric Bulletin, August 2005, 29, 305-308) who reported that admission for self-poisoning is common and suggested that adequate provision of psychiatric and social support is particularly important to ensure access for a greater number of patients. I agree with their statements; current estimates of self-harm (including self-poisoning) are about 3 per 1000 population per year. This results in over 100 000 hospital admissions each year (Gelder et al, 2001). Most psychological and social interventions have been evaluated but none has been clearly effective in reducing repetition of self-harm (Hawton et al, 1998). Although there is a lack of evidence of the effectiveness of interventions, there are strong reasons for believing that well-organised care has other benefits. It enables recognition and treatment of major mental disorders and also should be made accessible for a majority of patients.