Suicide literacy levels of nursing students: A cross-sectional study

INTRODUCTION: Health-care professionals have difficulty identifying suicidal people because suicide is a complex phenomenon with multiple causes. Health-care professionals do not know enough about the symptoms and risk factors of suicide, making it hard to diagnose suicidal people. This study aimed to determine the suicide literacy level and factors affecting the suicide literacy of nursing students.
METHODS: The descriptive and cross-sectional research was conducted with 463 nursing students studying at a state university. Research data were collected with the Personal Information Form and the literacy of suicide scale (LOSS). Data were evaluated with numbers, percentages, averages, Mann–Whitney U, and Kruskal–Wallis tests.
RESULTS: The total score average of the LOSS of the students participating in the study was 10.93±3.42, and the scores they received from the “Signs/symptoms,” “Risk factors,” “Causes/triggers,” and “Treatment/prevention” subdimensions were 1.72±1.21, 3.14±1.33, 3.36±1.95, and 2.92±0.95, respectively. It was determined that there was a statistical relationship between the student’s level of knowledge about suicide and their age and that there was a significant difference according to the academic year, receiving psychological support, and knowing someone who had previously considered suicide/attempted suicide (p<0.05).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Nursing students have moderate suicide literacy. It is recommended that evidence-based suicide prevention training programs that will help nursing students recognize individuals at risk of suicide and intervene early should be included in detail in the curriculum contents and skills should be gained by applying clinical simulation and standard patient education methods.