CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY ON PROTECTIVE FACTORS AGAINST SUICIDE IN INDIVIDUALS WITH SEVERE DEPRESSION

Abstract

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to find out “factors that prohibit those suffering from severe depression with suicidal ideation of committing suicide”, admitted to the psychiatric unit of a tertiary care hospital in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Peshawar. STUDY DESIGN Cross sectional study PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY This study was conducted in psychiatry department of Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar from May 2023 till November 2023. SUBJECTS AND METHODS We conducted this study on 230 admitted patients, and they were diagnosed with severe depression according to ICD-10 and beck scale for suicidal ideation was applied and a score of ≥ 8 was considered positive for the presence of suicidal ideations and then a “modified version of reasons for living scale” to identify protective factors against suicide. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 22.0. RESULTS The most common protective factor found in our study was religious and moral objections in 37.4% patients followed by fear of social disapproval in 17.4%, hopefulness and fear of suicide in 15.7% each and responsibility towards family was present in 13.9% patients. Data stratification for protective factors and other demographic characteristics including gender, residential, socioeconomic, marital, educational statuses and family system were statistically significant with their P-values of <0.001. CONCLUSION This study demonstrated that religious and moral objections were the most common protective factors in prevention of suicide, followed by fear of social disapproval, hopefulness, fear of suicide and responsibility towards family. Gender, residential, socioeconomic, marital, and educational statuses along with family system were significantly associated with the presence of protective factors against suicide.