A suicide risk screening scale for HIV-infected persons in the immediate post-diagnosis period

Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine

 
 
Field Value
 
Title A suicide risk screening scale for HIV-infected persons in the immediate post-diagnosis period
 
Creator Govender, R D Schlebusch, L
 
Subject Family Medicine; HIV Beck Hopelessness Scale; Beck Depression Inventory; Depression; Hopelessness; recent HIV-infection; Suicidal ideation; Suicide risk assessment; HIV HIV; suicide
Description Background. The risk of suicidal tendencies in HIV-infected persons appears high and may parallel the increasing prevalence of suicidal behaviour in South Africa.Objective. To construct a brief suicide risk screening scale (SRSS) as a self-administered instrument to screen for suicidal ideation in recently diagnosed HIV-infected persons.Methods. An SRSS was developed, drawing 14 items from two established screening tests, and assessed using a sample of 150 HIV-infected consenting adults identified at a voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) clinic at an academic district level hospital in Durban, South Africa. Participants returned three weeks after their initial assessment for a re-assessment.Results. The internal consistency of the SRSS was good (Cronbach’s alpha, 0.87), and its sensitivity (81%) was higher than its specificity (47%). The findings suggest that, despite certain limitations, the SRSS may be a valuable screening tool for suicidal ideation at VCT clinics.Conclusion. Screening for suicide risk and possible suicidal behaviour in HIV-positive persons may form a routine aspect of comprehensive patient care at VCT clinics to assist with effective prevention and treatment.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Date 2013-06-04
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY STUDIES
Format text/html application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/sajhivmed.v14i2.79
 
Source Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine; Vol 14, No 2 (2013); 58-63 2078-6751 1608-9693
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/79/122 https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/79/121 https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/downloadSuppFile/79/28
 
Coverage Durban, South Africa
Rights Copyright (c) 2013 R D Govender, L Schlebusch https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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