Suicide after absconding from inpatient care in England: an exploration of mental health professionals' experiences

Background: Absconding from inpatient care is associated with suicide risk in psychiatric populations. However, little is known about the real world context of suicide after absconding from a psychiatric ward or the experiences of clinical staff caring for these patients.

Aims: To identify the characteristics of inpatients who died by suicide after absconding and to explore these and further key issues related to suicide risk from the perspective of clinical staff.

Methods: A mixed-methods study using quantitative data of all patient suicides in England between 1997 and 2011 and a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 21 clinical staff.

Results: Four themes were identified as areas of concern for clinicians: problems with ward design, staffing problems, difficulties in assessing risk, and patient specific factors.

Conclusions: Results suggest that inpatients who died by suicide after absconding may have more complex and severe illness along with difficult life events, such as homelessness. Closer monitoring of inpatients and access points, and improved risk assessments are important to reduce suicide in this patient group.