Association of training on attitudes towards self-injuring clients across health professionals

The objective of this study was to evaluate associations between self-injury training and attitudes across different health care professions. In the study, 342 psychologists, social workers, psychiatric, and medical nurses were recruited from 12 hospitals in Belgium. Participants completed a confidential questionnaire assessing attitudes, perceived knowledge/competence in self-injury, and prior self-injury training. Professionals with training reported more positive empathy, less negative attitudes, and greater perceived knowledge/competence, which was related to positive attitudes. Mental health providers had more positive attitudes than medical professionals.

Attitudes towards self-injuring patients are multifaceted and vary across health professions. Training on self-injury should be incorporated into the educational curriculum of all health care professions.