Factors associated with treatment compliance in young people following an emergency department presentation for deliberate self-harm

Adam R Clarke; Vivienne Schnieden; Blake A Hamilton; A Michael Dudley; John Beard; Stewart L Einfeld; Richard Buss; Margaret Tobin; Michelle Knowles; Garry Stevens; Narelle Gibbs

doi:10.1080/13811110490270994

Factors associated with treatment compliance in young people following an emergency department presentation for deliberate self-harm

Arch Suicide Res. 2004;8(2):147-52. doi: 10.1080/13811110490270994.

Authors

Adam R Clarke¹, Vivienne Schnieden, Blake A Hamilton, A Michael Dudley, John Beard, Stewart L Einfeld, Richard Buss, Margaret Tobin, Michelle Knowles, Garry Stevens, Narelle Gibbs

Affiliation

¹ Brain & Behaviour Research Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia. aclarke@uow.edu.au

PMID: 16006401
DOI: 10.1080/13811110490270994

Abstract

This study investigated factors associated with patient non-compliance with follow-up treatment after a presentation to an Emergency Department (ED) for deliberate self-harm (DSH). 56 patients under 24 years and 20 parents participated in this study. Subjects were interviewed by telephone after they had attended or missed a follow-up appointment following a presentation to an ED for DSH. Convenience of the appointment time and the patients' beliefs about whether counseling would help them were found to differentiate attending and non-attending patients. The attitudes of parents also had a major influence on decisions to attend or not attend an appointment. These results support the use of a therapeutic intervention in the ED, targeting both patients and their parents' attitudes toward counseling.