Aftercare and Clinical Characteristics of People With Mental Illness who Commit Suicide: a Case-Control Study

A case-control study was done of people who committed suicide after discharge from psychiatric inpatient care. Controls were surviving psychiatric patients. Those who took their own lives were more likely to have had their care reduced at the last appointment in the community before death. Only 34% of suicide victims had an identifiable key worker. One implication of the findings is that maintaining care beyond the point of clinical recovery is important in protecting high-risk individuals.