Instruments to assess suicide risk: a systematic review.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Psychiatry
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Suicide poses a significant global public health challenge.
• Understanding current suicide risk assessment practices is crucial for effective intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify instruments used by healthcare professionals for suicide risk assessment.
• To evaluate the accessibility and scope of these assessment tools.
• To determine the prevalence of different suicide phenomena.

Main Methods:

• A systematic review of literature was conducted.
• Boolean searches included "scale AND suicide," "evaluation AND suicide," and "questionnaire AND suicide."
• Article selection involved two independent researchers, with a third resolving discrepancies.

Main Results:

• Twenty instruments for suicide risk assessment were identified from 206 articles.
• The Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSI) and The Columbia - Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) were the most frequently used.
• Both BSI and C-SSRS have structural limitations.

Conclusions:

• While BSI and C-SSRS are widely adopted, they are not considered gold standard tools.
• There is an urgent need for a new, comprehensive instrument to assess suicidality.
• Future research should focus on developing a tool that captures all psychopathological aspects of suicide.