Identifying nurses' needs in relation to suicide awareness and prevention.

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Mental Health
• Public Health

Background:

• Suicide is a significant public health concern requiring effective intervention strategies.
• Nurses play a crucial role in identifying and supporting individuals at risk of suicide.
• Gaps in nurses' training and confidence may hinder effective suicide prevention efforts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate nurses' current suicide awareness and prevention training.
• To assess nurses' confidence in discussing suicide with patients.
• To identify barriers and enablers influencing nurses' engagement in suicide prevention and their training needs.

Main Methods:

• An electronic survey was administered to members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN).
• The survey incorporated qualitative and quantitative questions.
• Thematic analysis was used to analyze the collected data from 415 respondents.

Main Results:

• Key barriers identified include lack of time, resources, skills, training, knowledge, insufficient services, and stigma.
• Nurses expressed a need for enhanced pre- and post-registration training.
• Regular updates on evidence-based approaches, supervision, and debriefing were highlighted as essential training components.

Conclusions:

• Integrating suicide prevention into all nursing fields and pre-registration curricula is vital.
• Supporting nurses in skill development and confidence-building for suicide conversations is crucial.
• Addressing systemic barriers is necessary to improve nurses' capacity in suicide prevention.