engleski

Suicidality

Suicidality, in the context of current research and knowledge, is a symptom of many psychiatric disorders and illnesses. Therefore, in the categorical sense, it is listed as part of the criteria needed to diagnose some psychiatric disorders and in clinical work represents a symptom, complication or alteration of these disorders. The suicide rate in Croatia (number of suicides per 100, 000 citizens) has been monitored regularly since 1986, when the State Registry of Suicides of Croatia was established at the Croatian National Institute of Public Health. In Croatia the suicide rate ranges, depending on the year, between 15 and 25 suicides per 100, 000 citizens ; in 2016 it was 17. When compared with other EU countries, Croatia has had an equal average su-icide rate since May 2014. Retrospective studies show that around 90% of indi-viduals who committed suicide had a recognizable psychiatric disorder prior to death. By assessing suicidal risk, we try to identify risk and protective factors. So far, no factor or group of factors has been identified that could predict suicide in an individual. Accordingly, if we think of suicide as a symptom rather than a nozological entity (although there were attempts to establish suicide as a sepa¬rate category), there were no individuals in the history of Croatian psychiatry that dealt exclusively with this issue. Psychiatrists have been involved with suicidality but only when treating diseases like schizophrenia, affective disorders or forensic psychiatry. However, the already mentioned epidemiological data clearly indicates that Croatia has been following European and world trends since its independ-ence, and for the past fifteen years it has been at the European average according to all epidemiological data describing the suicide rates of European countries. This is a consequence of high-quality and comprehensible treatment and approaches towards suicidal patients, better and more accessible psychosocial treatments, public health actions, and the acceptance of suicide as a social problem beyond just a medical or psychiatric model. Both globally and in Croatia there are only a handful of studies on suicide that are not burdened by being retrospective, but despite this had very interesting studies on suicide as well as valuable papers and books have been published in our country. Suicidality continues to remain within the frame of dealing with the underlying disorder which it is a symptom of, and everything else In this area is part of the professional and scientific interests of a number of psychiatrists.

Suicidality, psychiatric disorders, psychiatric illnesses, clinical work

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