Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Pathways to episodes of deliberate self‐harm experienced by mentally ill men in a high‐secure hospital over the course of their lives: an exploratory study

Pathways to episodes of deliberate self‐harm experienced by mentally ill men in a high‐secure... Purpose – There is a dearth of research exploring pathways to episodes of deliberate self‐harm (DSH) within mentally ill men in high‐secure hospitals. This study aims to explore pathway(s) to episodes of self‐harm experienced by this group over the course of their life. Design/methodology/approach – A total of seven men with a history of repetitive DSH participated in audio‐taped semi‐structured interviews. Transcribed interviews were analysed using grounded theory methods. Findings – Two pathways to episodes of DSH emerged and were termed: the relief, and the response to mental health problems pathways. Participation within a dyadic suicide pact emerged as an unexpected theme. Research limitations/implications – There were a number of limitations within this study. Participants did not describe DSH episodes, which occurred within the high‐secure hospital and it was unclear as to the stage of their illness or whether co‐morbid difficulties were present during the episodes of DSH. Further research is required to substantiate the two pathways to episodes of DSH found within this study. Practical implications – The present study offers a theoretical framework for clinicians working with mentally ill men within high‐secure hospitals, who have a history of DSH and identifies the need to carefully assess each individual episode of DSH. Originality/value – This study is the first to explore pathways to episodes of self‐harm as experienced by mentally ill men within a high‐secure hospital by interviewing patients directly. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png The British Journal of Forensic Practice Emerald Publishing

Pathways to episodes of deliberate self‐harm experienced by mentally ill men in a high‐secure hospital over the course of their lives: an exploratory study

Download PDF
14 pages

Loading next page...
 
/lp/emerald-publishing/pathways-to-episodes-of-deliberate-self-harm-experienced-by-mentally-qPf62ZGmpd

References (56)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © 2011 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved.
ISSN
1463-6646
DOI
10.1108/14636641111157814
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Purpose – There is a dearth of research exploring pathways to episodes of deliberate self‐harm (DSH) within mentally ill men in high‐secure hospitals. This study aims to explore pathway(s) to episodes of self‐harm experienced by this group over the course of their life. Design/methodology/approach – A total of seven men with a history of repetitive DSH participated in audio‐taped semi‐structured interviews. Transcribed interviews were analysed using grounded theory methods. Findings – Two pathways to episodes of DSH emerged and were termed: the relief, and the response to mental health problems pathways. Participation within a dyadic suicide pact emerged as an unexpected theme. Research limitations/implications – There were a number of limitations within this study. Participants did not describe DSH episodes, which occurred within the high‐secure hospital and it was unclear as to the stage of their illness or whether co‐morbid difficulties were present during the episodes of DSH. Further research is required to substantiate the two pathways to episodes of DSH found within this study. Practical implications – The present study offers a theoretical framework for clinicians working with mentally ill men within high‐secure hospitals, who have a history of DSH and identifies the need to carefully assess each individual episode of DSH. Originality/value – This study is the first to explore pathways to episodes of self‐harm as experienced by mentally ill men within a high‐secure hospital by interviewing patients directly.

Journal

The British Journal of Forensic Practice – Emerald Publishing

Published: Aug 16, 2011

Keywords: Men; Self‐harm; Schizophrenia; High‐secure hospital; Grounded theory; Mental illness; Patients

There are no references for this article.