Interest in suicide

[Tangerine123]

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Starting my training in psych and I need some recommendations.

I want to specialize in suicide. It seems that there aren't that many resources in that field? (From what i've seen online). I'll search for a fellowship or something later down the line.

For now. Does anybody recommend any books relating to suicide? Not just looking for clinical guidelines (Those come with the residency). Books about ethics, philosophy, history, etc would be nice

 

[Temperance]

There are several psychiatry departments where research about suicide is conducted. Unfortunately, I cannot speak to what sorts of training experiences are out there for psychiatrists as I'm more familiar with the clinical psychology side of things, but, off the top of my head, the psychiatry departments that do house suicide research include:

University of Rochester Medical Center
Duke University
McGill University
Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Some books I can think of that fall under what you're looking for (though I haven't personally read these):

Suicidology: A Comprehensive Biopsychosocial Perspective
The Ethics of Suicide
Farewell to the World: A History of Suicide

Some other books I've read that might be of interest to you:

Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide (this is for a lay audience but cuts across all of the fields that you mentioned in your post; worth noting that it's somewhat dated by now)
Why People Die by Suicide
The Suicidal Mind
Autopsy of a Suicidal Mind

If you want an academic community dedicated to suicide prevention, you can look into the American Association of Suicidology (listserv is open to members and non-members), International Academy of Suicide Research, and International Association for Suicide Prevention. I'm not as familiar with the latter two, but I have heard that the IASR/AFSP Suicide Research Summit that is held every two years has a larger bio focus than AAS's conference.

 

[Mass Effect]

All psychiatrists specialize in suicide. Not really sure what you mean. You can do research in it if you like, I suppose, but every board-certified psychiatrist should be an expert in suicide and risk assessment.

 

[psyguru]

This maybe of interest: Psychological Autopsy Certification Training

 

[Tangerine123]

There are several psychiatry departments where research about suicide is conducted. Unfortunately, I cannot speak to what sorts of training experiences are out there for psychiatrists as I'm more familiar with the clinical psychology side of things, but, off the top of my head, the psychiatry departments that do house suicide research include:

University of Rochester Medical Center
Duke University
McGill University
Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Some books I can think of that fall under what you're looking for (though I haven't personally read these):

Suicidology: A Comprehensive Biopsychosocial Perspective
The Ethics of Suicide
Farewell to the World: A History of Suicide

Some other books I've read that might be of interest to you:

Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide (this is for a lay audience but cuts across all of the fields that you mentioned in your post; worth noting that it's somewhat dated by now)
Why People Die by Suicide
The Suicidal Mind
Autopsy of a Suicidal Mind

If you want an academic community dedicated to suicide prevention, you can look into the American Association of Suicidology (listserv is open to members and non-members), International Academy of Suicide Research, and International Association for Suicide Prevention. I'm not as familiar with the latter two, but I have heard that the IASR/AFSP Suicide Research Summit that is held every two years has a larger bio focus than AAS's conference.

Thank you very much! I found a digital copy of "Farewell to the World" and will start with that. You got exactly what I was looking for. It's also encouraging to know that there are more reasources in this field than what I originally thought. I'll be comming back to your post after I finish the book.

 

[Tangerine123]

All psychiatrists specialize in suicide. Not really sure what you mean. You can do research in it if you like, I suppose, but every board-certified psychiatrist should be an expert in suicide and risk assessment.

Yes, I know it's part of the training. But I want to make it the focus of my career. Since I have free time right now due to corona and my unusual working circumstance, I'm dabling into the topic and reading more about fields such as sociology, ethics and philosophy.

While I know that I might change my opinion later on, suicidology is my current goal. I just want to get a broad exposure (multidisciplinary) to the field.

 

[Tangerine123]

This maybe of interest: Psychological Autopsy Certification Training

Thanks! I was aware that they held some short training courses. I'll look more into that

 

[Mass Effect]

Yes, I know it's part of the training. But I want to make it the focus of my career. Since I have free time right now due to corona and my unusual working circumstance, I'm dabling into the topic and reading more about fields such as sociology, ethics and philosophy.

While I know that I might change my opinion later on, suicidology is my current goal. I just want to get a broad exposure (multidisciplinary) to the field.

What exactly do you see yourself doing with that? Not trying to be rude or nitpicky. It's just that people subspecialize in everything, from bipolar d/o to refractory depression to psychotic disorders. But what would an expert in suicide even do?

 

[Stagg737]

What exactly do you see yourself doing with that? Not trying to be rude or nitpicky. It's just that people subspecialize in everything, from bipolar d/o to refractory depression to psychotic disorders. But what would an expert in suicide even do?

Fixing the ridiculous “comprehensive suicide screen” implemented but the VA system would be a good start.

 

[Tangerine123]

What exactly do you see yourself doing with that? Not trying to be rude or nitpicky. It's just that people subspecialize in everything, from bipolar d/o to refractory depression to psychotic disorders. But what would an expert in suicide even do?

I think there's only 1 or 2 suicidologists in my home country.

Some ideas: Suicide hotline, ER consultations followed by taking cases after discharge (with psychotherapy, not just pharm), Public policy, research, NGOs, Participating in continous education to general public and victims/families. It's a vast field.

 

[Mass Effect]

I think there's only 1 or 2 suicidologists in my home country.

Some ideas: Suicide hotline, ER consultations followed by taking cases after discharge (with psychotherapy, not just pharm), Public policy, research, NGOs, Participating in continous education to general public and victims/families. It's a vast field.

Suicide hotline is manned by people with Bachelor's degrees. You can do that even now if you like. ED consults you can also do as a general psychiatrist or with a CL fellowship if you want an academic ER. No one is going to hire you exclusively for suicide consults though. You'll see the full spectrum, from psychotic disorders to bipolar disorder to malingerers to substance abuse. That's what a consult psychiatrist is. In terms of educating the public, that's something many of us try to do (and I say many of us because I give a lot of talks, including talks on suicide), but I can see how billing yourself as a suicidologist may help with your brand.

Suidology is likely best suited for research.

 

[comp1]

I promise, you will get more training in suicidiology than you could want. It really is a basic component of any psychiatry residency, even the poorest.

 

[J ROD]

Fixing the ridiculous “comprehensive suicide screen” implemented but the VA system would be a good start.

Man, I can knock that thing out in 5 minutes. With VA is all about just doing it. Less is more.

 

[hamstergang]

Suidology is likely best suited for research.

I agree with this.

Some books I can think of that fall under what you're looking for (though I haven't personally read these):

Suicidology: A Comprehensive Biopsychosocial Perspective

I'm reading this now. It's a little strange at times but certainly interesting and informative. I'd recommend it to anyone wanting to learn more about suicidology.

I promise, you will get more training in suicidiology than you could want. It really is a basic component of any psychiatry residency, even the poorest.

I disagree. I feel I learned the basics well but there is more data and information out there I could have learned.

 

[Stagg737]

Man, I can knock that thing out in 5 minutes. With VA is all about just doing it. Less is more.

I mean, you can, it’s still largely a waste of time though when you’re doing that plus 2-3 other forms that go with it when the daily progress notes and d/c summary make it obvious that the screens aren’t necessary. It’s basically someone’s big bureaucratic research project that is going to produce worthless results when many people just quickly click through it.

 

[DynamicDidactic]

All psychiatrists specialize in suicide. Not really sure what you mean. You can do research in it if you like, I suppose, but every board-certified psychiatrist should be an expert in suicide and risk assessment.

My anecdotal experience is that most prescribers (to be fair, this is starting to include more psychiatric nurse practitioners) are relatively horrible at treating individuals with suicidal behavior.

And there is no effective risk assessment methods as of now. We are extremely poor at predicting who will attempt suicide after suicidal ideation.

 

[DynamicDidactic]

These may be worthwhile reads

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