Nursing Personnel Attitudes Towards Suicide: the Development of a Measure Scale

317 nursing professionals who worked in a teaching hospital completed the Suicide Behavior Attitude Questionnaire, which measures attitudes of nursing personnel towards suicide. The results show 3 interpretable factors: feelings when caring for the patient, professional capacity, & right to suicide. Greater professional capacity was reported by nursing assistants & those who had taken care of suicidal patients. The belief that a person does not have the right to die by suicide was stronger among older professionals, those who had family history of suicide, & Protestants. (LC) (15 refs)