Identifying Emergency Department Care in the Year Prior to Suicide Death

Suicide is a leading cause of mortality in the United States, causing about 45,000 deaths annually. Research suggests that universal screening in health care settings may be beneficial for prevention, but few studies have combined detailed suicide circumstances with ED encounter data to better understand care-seeking behavior prior to death.

Objective: To identify potential emergency department (ED) visits prior to suicide deaths in North Carolina (NC) and describe pre-suicide care-seeking in EDs.