Resource Tag: SRI LANKA

There is increasing evidence from South Asia and internationally that intimate partner violence (IPV) is strongly associated with self-harm, however its association with suicide and self-harm has not been extensively examined, nor has this relationship been explored at a national level. Using national datasets, area-level variation in IPV, suicide and self-harm in Sri Lanka were […]

Background: Suicide is a global public health problem. Compared to other middle-income countries, much literature has been generated on the topic of self-harm and suicide in Sri Lanka. Harmful use of alcohol is a well-known risk  factor to self-harm and suicide, however the connection needed further exploration. Aim: The aim was to investigate alcohol’s role […]

Background: Suicide is and has been a major public health problem in Sri Lanka and has generated a wide range of literature. Aims: This review aimed to systematically appraise what is known about suicide in Sri Lanka. The patterns and content of articles were examined and recommendations for further research proposed. Method: The paper describes the systematic search, […]

Suicide is a severe, yet avoidable, public health issue that affects people all around the world, including Sri Lanka. Despite many initial measures to address the issue, Sri Lanka’s suicide rate remains high, keeping it in second place in the region. As a result, it is time to revisit them and assess their contribution to […]

Suicide is a severe, yet avoidable, public health issue that affects people all around the world, including Sri Lanka. Despite many initial measures to address the issue, Sri Lanka’s suicide rate remains high, keeping it in second place in the region. As a result, it is time to revisit them and assess their contribution to […]

Background: Media reporting may influence suicidal behavior. In-depth exploration of how self-harm and suicide are portrayed in newspaper articles in a middle-income country such as Sri Lanka is lacking. Aims: We aimed to explore how self-harm and suicide are portrayed in Sri Lankan printed newspapers. Method: Seven English- and Sinhala-language Sri Lankan newspapers were screened for articles reporting on self-harm […]

Background Sri Lanka has reduced its overall suicide rate by 70% over the last two decades through regulation of a series of agricultural pesticides. We aimed to identify the key pesticide(s) now responsible for suicides in rural Sri Lanka to provide data for further pesticide regulation. Methods We performed a secondary analysis of data collected […]

Background: Irresponsible media reporting may influence suicidal behavior. Adherence to guidelines for responsible reporting of suicide has not been examined in Sri Lanka in recent times. Aims: To examine the quality of reporting on self-harm and suicide in Sri Lankan newspapers and compare the quality between Sinhala and English newspapers. Method: From December 1, 2014 to January 31, 2015, 407 […]

Background: A number of Delphi expert consensus studies have been carried out with different countries and cultural groups to develop guidelines on how a member of the public should provide assistance to a person who is suicidal. The present study aimed to determine whether cross-culturally generalizable suicide first aid actions are possible by comparing agreement across […]

Background: An individual’s suicide risk is determined by personal characteristics, but is also influenced by their environment. Previous studies indicate a role of contextual effects on suicidal behaviour, but there is a dearth of quantitative evidence from Asia. Methods: Individual and community level data were collected on 165,233 people from 47,919 households in 171 communities […]

Background Between 1950 and 1995 suicide rates in Sri Lanka increased eight fold to a peak of 47 per 100,000 in 1995. By 2005 rates had halved. Our aim was to evaluate whether Sri Lanka’s regulatory controls on the import and sale of pesticides that are particularly toxic to humans were responsible for these changes […]

Sri Lanka has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Gatekeeper programs aimed at specific target groups could be a promising suicide prevention strategy in the country. The aim of this study was to develop guidelines that help members of the public to provide first aid to persons in Sri Lanka who are […]

An estimated 803 900 people worldwide died as a result of self-harm in 2012. The deliberate ingestion of pesticides has been identified as the method most frequently used to commit fatal self-harm globally. In Sri Lanka, it is estimated that up to 60% of all suicides are committed using this method. The aim of the present […]

An estimated 803 900 people worldwide died as a result of self-harm in 2012. The deliberate ingestion of pesticides has been identified as the method most frequently used to commit fatal self-harm globally. In Sri Lanka, it is estimated that up to 60% of all suicides are committed using this method. The aim of the present […]

Attempted or non-fatal self-poisoning is common in Sri Lanka. To date, most preventive strategies have focused on limitation of access to toxic pesticides, which has reduced the rates of fatal self-poisoning. However the ongoing phenomenon of non-fatal self-poisoning indicates the need for exploration of alternate preventive strategies. Self-poisoning in Sri Lanka has been described as […]

This paper explores competing stories of suffering, frustration and anger that shape the performance and reception of suicidal behaviours in contemporary Sri Lanka. Drawing from the results of 21 months of ethnographic fieldwork, I show how suicidal acts fit within broader narratives of class and gender experience and expression that draw from contemporary and historical […]

Sri Lanka has witnessed a fall in suicide rates in the period 1991 to 2010, however the incidence of self-harm remains high. Over the same period alcohol consumption has increased for both alcohol that is purchased legally and distilled privately. This paper investigates a number of secondary data sets from such bodies as the Department […]

All deaths ruled suicide by the Coroner’s Court in Colombo in 2006 were studied. Close relations or friends who attended the inquest were interviewed. 151 suicides were documented, 93 were by men. The majority were aged between 20-29 years. One-third of victims were unemployed. At the time of death, 75% of victims were living with […]

The effect of the 2004 tsuanmi on suicide rates in Sri Lanka were investigated. The number of suicides in the 2 years prior & 1 year after the tsunami were examined. Data from districts affected by the tsunami were compared with those from unaffected districts. No significant differences were found between the number of suicides […]

In this letter to the editor, the authors discuss children & adolescents who were admitted to the Teaching Hospital in Karapitiya (Sri Lanks) following deliberate self-harm. Admissions for deliberate self-harm increased by 91% from 2001 to 2007 with girls accounting for most of this increase. Admissions for deliberate self-harm increased consistently with age. Admissions after […]

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This study described substances used in overdose & the characteristics of patients admitted with medicinal drug overdose in an urban tertiary care hospital in Colombo. A descriptive study of 191 patients admitted with intentional self-poisoning was carried out. Medicinal drugs were the most common substance used in overdose. Those who used medicinal drugs were mainly […]

Patients who had self-poisoned with pesticides & who were admitted to adult medical wards were interviewed by study doctors to identify the source of the pesticides they ingested. Of the 669 patients included in the study, 425 were male. In 511 cases, the pesticides had been stored either inside or immediately outside the house; among […]