[Ratio between suicides and attempted suicides in the area of the Bjelovar-Bilogora District]

The aim of this paper was to point out the differences between groups of suicide attempters and suicides in prewar period in the Bjelovar-Bilogora county. The data about suicide attempt in patients were assembled from the Psychiatry Department of Bjelovar General Hospital in 1988-1990 period. The data about committed suicides in 1988-1998 period were assembled from Bjelovar-Bilogora police administration. That enabled the analyses of suicides realisation in a suicide attempters group. Sex rate differences were explained by differences in sex roles. Proportional relation between suicide and age and reverse proportional relation between suicide attempts and age was due to biological and psychosocial characteristics of the young and the old. Relation between self-destructive behaviour and appeal in suicidal behaviour was emphasized. Male suicide attempters were more often under the influence of alcohol which reflected alcoholism in general population. In suicide attempts men chose severe means more often than women. More frequent diagnosis of personal disorder in male suicide attempt group was explained by three factors: 1. Higher frequency of antisocial personal disorder in male population; 2. Psychiatrist tendency to avoid stigmatization of patients with personal disorder diagnosis, which has negative connotation of old concept of psychopathy; and 3. Psychiatrist tendency to use this diagnosis only for more serious forms of disruptive behaviour, such as antisocial personal disorder. Three characteristics were pointed out: 1. Low social sensitivity for suicidal behaviour; 2. Failure to instruct individuals to seek psychiatrist help; and 3. Individual hesitation to seek that help. This emphasized the need for the development of non-hospital psychiatry service, as well as the organization of continual psychiatric monitoring of regional epidemiological suicide data.