Depression as a Terminal Illness – is there a place for palliative care?

Abstract

In 2020, there were 5,224 suicide deaths registered in England and Wales [1]. The Mental Health Foundation reports that ~70% are in patients with depression [2]. The number of attempted suicides is much higher– South West London and St George’s Mental Health Trust estimates that at least 140,000 people attempt suicide in England and Wales every year [3]. In suicidal depression, the psychological pain is often unbearable and feels overwhelmingly incompatible with life. One is no longer living; they are merely surviving and eventually, the exhaustion will lead to decompensation. This is marked by suicide. The goal is to end the suffering permanently and this is achieved through death.