Contents

Disclaimer

Oxford University Press makes no representation, express or implied, that the drug dosages in this book are correct. Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures with the most up to date published product information and data sheets provided by the manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulations. The authors and the publishers do not accept responsibility or legal liability for any errors in the text or for the misuse or misapplication of material in this work. Except where otherwise stated, drug dosages and recommendations are for the non-pregnant adult who is not breastfeeding.

Show Summary Details
Page of

Deliberate self-harm: epidemiology and risk factors 

Deliberate self-harm: epidemiology and risk factors
Chapter:
Deliberate self-harm: epidemiology and risk factors
Author(s):

Ella Arensman

and Ad J. F. M. Kerkhof

DOI:
10.1093/med/9780199696758.003.0122
Page of

PRINTED FROM OXFORD MEDICINE ONLINE (www.oxfordmedicine.com). © Oxford University Press, 2021. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Medicine Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice).

date: 24 January 2022

Deliberate self-harm is a major problem in many contemporary societies. DSH seems to reflect the degree of powerlessness and hopelessness of young people with low education, low income, unemployment, and difficulties in coping with life stress. As such, non-fatal suicidal behaviour should be a major concern for politicians. There are substantial differences between communities in the prevalence of deliberate self-harm. This suggests that some communities better meet the needs of their underprivileged youngsters than others do, but we barely understand the differences between communities and nations. Preventive action therefore is difficult to design. There is a need for a better nationwide continuous registration of DSH and related socio-economic conditions. There is also a need for better mental health care management of DSH patients, and for experimental studies on the prevention of repetition. Although we know that persons who engage in DSH are at high risk for future fatal and non-fatal suicidal behaviour, development of effective intervention, and prevention programmes is a key priority.

Access to the complete content on Oxford Medicine Online requires a subscription or purchase. Public users are able to search the site and view the abstracts for each book and chapter without a subscription.

Please subscribe or login to access full text content.

If you have purchased a print title that contains an access token, please see the token for information about how to register your code.

For questions on access or troubleshooting, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.