COVİD-19 PANDEMİSİNİN 65 YAŞ VE ÜZERİ YAŞLI BİREYLERİN İNTİHAR GİRİŞİMLERİ ÜZERİNE ETKİSİ

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study is to examine whether the Covid-19 pandemic affects the suicide attempts of elderly individuals aged 65 and over and to offer solutions for the prevention of these suicide attempts. Methods: The medical records of elderly patients aged 65 years and over who applied to the Emergency Department between March 01, 2016, and March 31, 2022, were retrospectively analyzed. "Pre-pandemic period" suicide attempts and "Pandemic period" suicide attempts were handled separately. Age, gender, length of hospital stays, type of suicide attempt, psychological status, post-examination status, whether he lived alone or with his family, whether there was a recurrent suicide attempt and whether there was a history of psychiatric illness were recorded in the case study forms. SPSS (version 26.0) package program was used for statistical analysis. Demographic data were expressed as numbers and percentages. Results: In this study, the records of 71 patients over the age of 65 were reviewed retrospectively. It was determined that the total number of patients who attempted suicide during the pandemic period showed a statistically significant increase compared to the pre-pandemic period (p<0.00001), and there was a 3.56-fold increase in suicide attempts over 65 years of age. Conclusion: Comorbidities with old age negatively affect the quality of life and lead people to despair. Isolation measures taken in old age, when the need for social support increases, pushes the elderly to loneliness even more, and this situation emerges as increasing suicide attempts.