Using Long Term Risk Factors from the Ontario Mental Health Reporting System (OMHRS) dataset to predict suicide admission and suicide severity among acute psychiatric inpatients in Ontario, Canada

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between multidimensional long term suicide risk factors (LTRF) and short-term suicide related outcomes known as early warning signs (EWS) among a cross-section of psychiatric inpatients in Ontario between 2005 and 2019. This study conducted a secondary data analysis with statistical methodology using the Ontario Mental Health Reporting System (OMHRS) dataset. This study found a diverse range of LTRF from multiple domains related to a person’s health and wellbeing to be predictive of EWS. These findings indicate that suicide is a complex phenomenon with multiple interrelated contributing factors, and therefore the whole person should be treated with a multi-disciplinary approach to ameliorate suicide potential, rather than focusing on individual or a particular group of LTRFs.