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Two Generations of Slovenian Suicidal Adolescent Inpatients

Psihiatrina Klinika Ljubljana, KOMZ, Zaloka 29, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenija, maja.radobuljac{at}psih-klinika.si

Urban Groleger

Psihiatrina Klinika Ljubljana, Studenec 48, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenija

Nada Ovsenik

Psihiatrina Klinika Ljubljana, KOMZ (EAP), Zaloka 29, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenija

Martina Tomori

Chair of Psychiatry, Katedra za Psihiatrijo, Medicinska Fakulteta, Univerza v Ljubljani, Zaloka 29, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenija

Background: The political and socio-economic situation in Slovenia, a former Yugoslav republic, a country in transition and a country with a high suicide rate, which joined the European Union in 2004, has changed steadily since the beginning of the 1970s. Literature shows constancy in suicide statistics in Slovenia during these times.

Aim: The present study examines whether the suicidal adolescent inpatient population in Slovenia reflects recent social changes and upheavals.

Method: Data on two groups of patients admitted to a specialized adolescent psychiatry department after attempting suicide were collected. The first group (n = 74) were patients admitted from 1975 to 1977, the second group (n = 73) from 2002 to 2004. They were compared on general characteristics, family and living circumstances, risk behaviors, suicide attempts and diagnoses.

Results: The comparison revealed statistically significant differences between groups on educational level, number of siblings, frequency of smoking and psychoactive medication misuse as well as number of previous suicide attempts. No differences were found in other family and living circumstances, methods used in the index suicide attempt, other risk behaviors or diagnoses.

Conclusions: The post-independence suicidal inpatient population in Slovenia shows a tendency towards higher morbidity, but has changed less than expected considering the vast changes in the society. These results suggest a certain constancy in adolescent suicidal behavior.

Key Words: adolescent • attempted suicide • country in transition • inpatient • risk-taking • suicidal behavior

International Journal of Social Psychiatry, Vol. 53, No. 3, 274-284 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/0020764006074583


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