Care for Suicide Attempters : A Report from the Strategic Research for Suicide Prevention, ACTION-J

Abstract

Previous suicide attempt is a potent risk factor of later suicide. Therefore, preventing repetition of suicide attempt for suicide attempters is pivotal in suicide prevention measures. Recently, ACTION-J, a randomized controlled multicenter trial of post-suicide attempt case management for the prevention of further attempts in Japan, suggested that assertive case management intervention could reduce the incidence of repetition of suicide attempt in suicide attempters. ACTION-J was conducted among 17 hospitals with both an emergency department and a psychiatric department. Nine hundred and fourteen eligible participants were randomly assigned to either the assertive case management group or the enhanced usual care group. The results of the study suggested that the assertive case management intervention was significantly effective up to the short term. The suicide prevention act published by the Cabinet Office had already mentioned about ACTION-J, and the training program of specified case managers has been developed by the ACTION-J study group. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has just launched a project for suicide attempters based on ACTION-J, addressing the task of dissemination of the ACTION-J model.