Matiwos Soboka
All Authors:M. Soboka, S. Stewart, P. Tibbob, J. Wang. Dalhousie University, Canada
Background:
This study aimed to examine the relationship between substance use and suicide risk among adult clients who sought help from Mental Health and Addictions (MHA) intake in Nova Scotia.
Methods:
We included 22,500 MHA Intake clients aged 19+ years. During the Intake assessment, participants were assessed for suicide risk (past suicide attempt, suicidal ideation during the interview or two weeks before the interview). Substance such as alcohol, stimulants, opioids, cannabis, and other drugs use were assessed. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the association between substance use and suicide risk.
Results:
About 29 % of the study participants had suicidal thoughts, while 34.1% and 4.1% had mild and moderate/high suicide risk. Participants who use hallucinogens had the highest prevalence of mild and moderate/high suicide risk (61.3% and 12.9%, respectively), followed by amphetamine/methamphetamine (48.5% and 13.5%) and sedative/hypnotics (47.5% and 9.0%) users. Alcohol (aOR=1.21, 95%CI=1.05, 1.39), stimulants (aOR=1.58, 95%CI=1.21, 2.07), hallucinogens (aOR=3.38, 95%CI=1.89, 6.05), sedative/hypnotics (aOR=1.97, 95%CI=1.17, 3.30), and polysubstance (aOR=1.85, 95%CI=1.16, 2.97) use were associated with moderate/high suicide risk. Additionally, tobacco (aOR=1.06, 95%CI=1.100, 1.13) and cannabis (aOR=1.23, 95%CI=1.04, 1.46) use were associated with mild suicide risk adjusting for socio-demographic variables and mental health problems.
Conclusion:
The findings from this study underscore the importance of considering substance use patterns when assessing suicide risk and highlight the need for interventions and preventive measures for individuals engaging in substance use.