Crisis intervention for attempted suicide in Shanghai,China

Suicide, which is a common problem in China, is attracting more attention from Chinese psychiatrists at present. This study reports on the demographic characteristics of 75 suicide attempters and discusses the effects of crisis intervention (CI) management of these people in Shanghai. Most of them are under 35 years of age and have very poor relationships with their partners and parents. It appears that 77.3 per cent of the attempters can improve and are able to cope with stressful events through supportive psychotherapy and brief problem-oriented psychotherapeutic management. The author suggests that CI can be an immediate, effective and practical approach when used to prevent suicide and parasuicide in the community in China.