Action 5.31

Hospitals

Identify risk of self-harm

When a person presents with self-harm or thoughts of self-harm, their physical safety is often the clinical priority. Triage can be supported by use of a validated tool such as the Mental Health Triage Tool.

Maintain an empathic, non-judgemental approach while implementing clinical actions. Engage therapeutically with the person to understand what the act or thought of self-harm means for the person. Self-harm can be related to suicidal thoughts, or can be independent of these. The person may or may not be clear about their intent. Some self-harm may be enacted without suicidal ideation, but still present a risk to the person’s life. Always consider self-harm seriously.

Processes of respectful and effective therapeutic engagement create safety for people who have thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Avoid making presumptions about the person’s intent, including whether the person’s self-harm does or does not indicate suicidal thoughts or is ‘attention-seeking’. Communicate with the person, their carers and family, and other clinicians in non-judgemental language.

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists endorses the national guidelines developed in the United Kingdom by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the clinical management of self-harm.

Some people have recurrent episodes of self-harm, including people who have been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Members of the workforce may experience conflicting feelings about treating people for recurrent self-harm. Clinical guidelines have been developed to support health service organisations.¹

Identify risk of suicide

When a person presents with suicidal thoughts, or has attempted suicide, their immediate physical safety is a priority. Use the environment, formal observation, and engagement with the person and any accompanying support people to ensure that the person remains safe until comprehensive assessment is conducted and a collaborative care plan is initiated. Steps taken to implement this action align with the Clinical Governance Standard, the Partnering with Consumers Standard, and the Recognising and Responding to Acute Deterioration Standard.

Ensure that the organisation has a system in place for frontline members of the workforce to gain access to specialist mental health expertise to assess and manage a person with suicidal thoughts. This process should be developed locally, and reflect available resources and partnership agreements. Ensure that members of the workforce are aware of the local process and how to escalate care. Review the effectiveness of the local process regularly, and in response to critical incidents.

Ensure implementation of national, state or territory, or local policies, such as the NSW Health policy Clinical Care of People Who May Be Suicidal.

Many people who attempt suicide have contacted a member of the workforce before the attempt. Train all members of the workforce to recognise signs of potential risk for suicide and engage therapeutically to develop trust so that people can discuss these thoughts. People who have been treated after a suicide attempt report that the attitudes of members of the healthcare workforce were an important factor determining whether they would disclose suicidal thoughts in the future.²

For some people, treatment after a suicide attempt may be the first time that the clinical or social stressors leading to the attempt have come to light.

Comprehensive psychosocial assessment may reveal mental illness or substance use conditions that can respond to clinical treatment, or social factors such as domestic violence that increase the risk of suicide. Ensure that the organisation has the capacity to deal with the issues, or has established links with partner organisations.

Adopt a recovery-oriented approach, focused on restoring hope, throughout clinical engagement with a person after a suicide attempt. The specific treatment immediately after a suicide attempt is likely to be a brief episode in the person’s experience. They and their families will be dealing with the long-term effects, and interventions need to:

Align with the patient’s and family’s existing skills, values and preferences
Identify the supports that may be needed to achieve these
Link to these services.

Currently, less than half of the people who have attempted suicide report being involved in treatment decisions.²

Carers and family members often need extra support to cope with a person’s suicide attempt. Provide these services, or arrange for a partner organisation to do so. These supports are also needed for family members if a person has completed suicide. A range of organisations can provide this support, including:

Use tools and resources

Population screening is recommended for certain groups when higher risk has been identified for members of the group who have no previous history of mental illness or self-harm. For instance, women accessing prenatal services are screened using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.

The national framework for suicide prevention sets out the roles of health service and other organisations. Called Living is for Everyone, the framework is supported by a regularly updated website. The website also contains a series of fact sheets, which include guidance about suicide prevention strategies and how to implement them.

Reflecting the specific issues facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, there is also a National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy. Ensure that members of the workforce are familiar with this strategy, and review processes to ensure that they cover the issues for the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Support this approach with workforce training in culturally competent care, and the employment of, or partnerships with, experts in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health, and social and emotional wellbeing.

Day Procedure Services

Day procedure services conduct pre-admission screening to determine whether it is currently safe to undertake a procedure in this setting.

Members of the workforce may become aware that a person is experiencing thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Day procedure services typically do not have resources on site to conduct comprehensive psychosocial and risk assessments. It is therefore critical that the organisation has referral mechanisms for this information to be provided to the referring clinician and, where possible, to establish links with relevant local agencies that can provide these services.

Make the workforce aware of the local referral processes and how to use them when they have identified a person who is at risk of self-harm or suicide.

Refer to the hospitals tab for detailed implementation strategies for this action.

Examples of evidence

Select only examples currently in use:

Policy documents that outline collaborative processes for identifying and treating patients at risk of self-harm or suicide, or who have self-harmed, including pre-admission screening
Risk assessment tools for patients at risk of self-harm or suicide
Training documents about identifying and treating patients at risk of self-harm or suicide, or who have self-harmed
Consumer and carer information packages or resources about strategies for managing self-harm, or risks of self-harm or suicide, and escalation protocols
Clinical incident monitoring system that includes information on self-harm and suicide
Resources for the workforce to help identify patients who require close monitoring
Audit results of healthcare records for identifying carers and engaging them in shared decision making when a person is identified as at risk of self-harm
Patient and carer experience surveys, a complaints management system and a consumer participation policy for patients at risk of self-harm or suicide
Observation that information about referring patients to specialist mental health services is accessible to clinicians.

MPS & Small Hospitals

Identify risk of self-harm

When a person presents with self-harm or thoughts of self-harm, their physical safety is often the clinical priority. Triage can be supported by use of a validated tool such as the Mental Health Triage Tool.

Maintain an empathic, non-judgemental approach while implementing clinical actions. Engage therapeutically with the person to understand what the act or thought of self-harm means for the person. Self-harm can be related to suicidal thoughts, or can be independent of these. The person may or may not be clear about their intent. Some self-harm may be enacted without suicidal ideation, but still present a risk to the person’s life. Always consider self-harm seriously.

Processes of respectful and effective therapeutic engagement create safety for people who have thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Avoid making presumptions about the person’s intent, including whether the person’s self-harm does or does not indicate suicidal thoughts or is ‘attention-seeking’. Communicate with the person, their carers and family, and other clinicians in non-judgemental language.

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists endorses the national guidelines developed in the United Kingdom by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the clinical management of self-harm.

Some people have recurrent episodes of self-harm, including people who have been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Members of the workforce may experience conflicting feelings about treating people for recurrent self-harm. Clinical guidelines have been developed to support health service organisations.¹

Identify risk of suicide

When a person presents with suicidal thoughts, or has attempted suicide, their immediate physical safety is a priority. Use the environment, formal observation, and engagement with the person and any accompanying support people to ensure that the person remains safe until comprehensive assessment is conducted and a collaborative care plan is initiated. Steps taken to implement this action align with the Clinical Governance Standard, the Partnering with Consumers Standard, and the Recognising and Responding to Acute Deterioration Standard.

Ensure that the organisation has a system in place for frontline members of the workforce to gain access to specialist mental health expertise to assess and manage a person with suicidal thoughts. This process should be developed locally, and reflect available resources and partnership agreements. Ensure that members of the workforce are aware of the local process and how to escalate care. Review the effectiveness of the local process regularly, and in response to critical incidents.

Ensure implementation of national, state or territory, or local policies, such as the NSW Health policy Clinical Care of People Who May Be Suicidal.

Many people who attempt suicide have contacted a member of the workforce before the attempt. Train all members of the workforce to recognise signs of potential risk for suicide and engage therapeutically to develop trust so that people can discuss these thoughts. People who have been treated after a suicide attempt report that the attitudes of members of the healthcare workforce were an important factor determining whether they would disclose suicidal thoughts in the future.²

Stigma following self-harm or a suicide attempt can present particular challenges in a small hospital or MPS because members of the community are often treated in the same setting. In these circumstances, strategies to maintain privacy for the person include using carers or companions rather than security guards.

For some people, treatment after a suicide attempt may be the first time that the clinical or social stressors leading to the attempt have come to light.

Comprehensive psychosocial assessment may reveal mental illness or substance use conditions that can respond to clinical treatment, or social factors such as domestic violence that increase the risk of suicide. Ensure that the organisation has the capacity to deal with the issues, or has established links with partner organisations.

Adopt a recovery-oriented approach, focused on restoring hope, throughout clinical engagement with a person after a suicide attempt. The specific treatment immediately after a suicide attempt is likely to be a brief episode in the person’s experience. They and their families will be dealing with the long-term effects, and interventions need to:

Align with the patient’s and family’s existing skills, values and preferences
Identify the supports that may be needed to achieve these
Link to these services.

Currently, less than half of the people who have attempted suicide report being involved in treatment decisions.²

Carers and family members often need extra support to cope with a person’s suicide attempt. Provide these services, or arrange for a partner organisation to do so. These supports are also needed for family members if a person has completed suicide. Several organisations can provide this support, including:

Use tools and resources

Population screening is recommended for certain groups when higher risk has been identified for members of the group who have no previous history of mental illness or self-harm. For instance, women accessing prenatal services are screened using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.

The national framework for suicide prevention sets out the roles of health service and other organisations. Called Living is for Everyone, the framework is supported by a regularly updated website. The website also contains a series of fact sheets, which include guidance about suicide prevention strategies and how to implement them.

Reflecting the specific issues facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, there is also a National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy. Ensure that members of the workforce are familiar with this strategy, and review processes to ensure that they cover the issues for the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Support this approach with workforce training in culturally competent care, and the employment of, or partnerships with, experts in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health, and social and emotional wellbeing.

Hospitals

Identify risk of self-harm

When a person presents with self-harm or thoughts of self-harm, their physical safety is often the clinical priority. Triage can be supported by use of a validated tool such as the Mental Health Triage Tool.

Maintain an empathic, non-judgemental approach while implementing clinical actions. Engage therapeutically with the person to understand what the act or thought of self-harm means for the person. Self-harm can be related to suicidal thoughts, or can be independent of these. The person may or may not be clear about their intent. Some self-harm may be enacted without suicidal ideation, but still present a risk to the person’s life. Always consider self-harm seriously.

Processes of respectful and effective therapeutic engagement create safety for people who have thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Avoid making presumptions about the person’s intent, including whether the person’s self-harm does or does not indicate suicidal thoughts or is ‘attention-seeking’. Communicate with the person, their carers and family, and other clinicians in non-judgemental language.

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists endorses the national guidelines developed in the United Kingdom by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the clinical management of self-harm.

Some people have recurrent episodes of self-harm, including people who have been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Members of the workforce may experience conflicting feelings about treating people for recurrent self-harm. Clinical guidelines have been developed to support health service organisations.¹

Identify risk of suicide

When a person presents with suicidal thoughts, or has attempted suicide, their immediate physical safety is a priority. Use the environment, formal observation, and engagement with the person and any accompanying support people to ensure that the person remains safe until comprehensive assessment is conducted and a collaborative care plan is initiated. Steps taken to implement this action align with the Clinical Governance Standard, the Partnering with Consumers Standard, and the Recognising and Responding to Acute Deterioration Standard.

Ensure that the organisation has a system in place for frontline members of the workforce to gain access to specialist mental health expertise to assess and manage a person with suicidal thoughts. This process should be developed locally, and reflect available resources and partnership agreements. Ensure that members of the workforce are aware of the local process and how to escalate care. Review the effectiveness of the local process regularly, and in response to critical incidents.

Ensure implementation of national, state or territory, or local policies, such as the NSW Health policy Clinical Care of People Who May Be Suicidal.

Many people who attempt suicide have contacted a member of the workforce before the attempt. Train all members of the workforce to recognise signs of potential risk for suicide and engage therapeutically to develop trust so that people can discuss these thoughts. People who have been treated after a suicide attempt report that the attitudes of members of the healthcare workforce were an important factor determining whether they would disclose suicidal thoughts in the future.²

For some people, treatment after a suicide attempt may be the first time that the clinical or social stressors leading to the attempt have come to light.

Comprehensive psychosocial assessment may reveal mental illness or substance use conditions that can respond to clinical treatment, or social factors such as domestic violence that increase the risk of suicide. Ensure that the organisation has the capacity to deal with the issues, or has established links with partner organisations.

Adopt a recovery-oriented approach, focused on restoring hope, throughout clinical engagement with a person after a suicide attempt. The specific treatment immediately after a suicide attempt is likely to be a brief episode in the person’s experience. They and their families will be dealing with the long-term effects, and interventions need to:

Align with the patient’s and family’s existing skills, values and preferences
Identify the supports that may be needed to achieve these
Link to these services.

Currently, less than half of the people who have attempted suicide report being involved in treatment decisions.²

Carers and family members often need extra support to cope with a person’s suicide attempt. Provide these services, or arrange for a partner organisation to do so. These supports are also needed for family members if a person has completed suicide. A range of organisations can provide this support, including:

Use tools and resources

Population screening is recommended for certain groups when higher risk has been identified for members of the group who have no previous history of mental illness or self-harm. For instance, women accessing prenatal services are screened using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.

The national framework for suicide prevention sets out the roles of health service and other organisations. Called Living is for Everyone, the framework is supported by a regularly updated website. The website also contains a series of fact sheets, which include guidance about suicide prevention strategies and how to implement them.

Reflecting the specific issues facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, there is also a National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy. Ensure that members of the workforce are familiar with this strategy, and review processes to ensure that they cover the issues for the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Support this approach with workforce training in culturally competent care, and the employment of, or partnerships with, experts in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health, and social and emotional wellbeing.

Day Procedure Services

Day procedure services conduct pre-admission screening to determine whether it is currently safe to undertake a procedure in this setting.

Members of the workforce may become aware that a person is experiencing thoughts of self-harm or suicide. Day procedure services typically do not have resources on site to conduct comprehensive psychosocial and risk assessments. It is therefore critical that the organisation has referral mechanisms for this information to be provided to the referring clinician and, where possible, to establish links with relevant local agencies that can provide these services.

Make the workforce aware of the local referral processes and how to use them when they have identified a person who is at risk of self-harm or suicide.

Refer to the hospitals tab for detailed implementation strategies for this action.

Examples of evidence

Select only examples currently in use:

Policy documents that outline collaborative processes for identifying and treating patients at risk of self-harm or suicide, or who have self-harmed, including pre-admission screening
Risk assessment tools for patients at risk of self-harm or suicide
Training documents about identifying and treating patients at risk of self-harm or suicide, or who have self-harmed
Consumer and carer information packages or resources about strategies for managing self-harm, or risks of self-harm or suicide, and escalation protocols
Clinical incident monitoring system that includes information on self-harm and suicide
Resources for the workforce to help identify patients who require close monitoring
Audit results of healthcare records for identifying carers and engaging them in shared decision making when a person is identified as at risk of self-harm
Patient and carer experience surveys, a complaints management system and a consumer participation policy for patients at risk of self-harm or suicide
Observation that information about referring patients to specialist mental health services is accessible to clinicians.