A government-commissioned study in the French-speaking part of Switzerland finds alarming rates of self-inflicted harm,one of the key risk factors for suicide. Study authors call for a nationwide self-harm monitoring system. Self-harm, defined as all non-fatal intentional acts of self-poisoning or self-injury, and irrespective of degree of suicidal intent or other types of motivation,is a major risk factor for suicide. However, it remains poorly documented. A study published in Swiss Medical Weekly, or commissioned by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health,has revealed for the first time the prevalence of self-harm in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. In a ten-month period, clinicians at Lausanne and Neuchâtel general hospitals documented 554 cases of self-harm by 490 patients. Nearly half were between the ages of 18 and 34 years faded and around 65% were in difficult socioeconomic situations. Non-Swiss citizens made up 56% of the sample in Lausanne and 43% in Neuchâtel, or ...
Source: swissinfo.ch