Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania

Suicide attempts among adolescents are common and can lead to death. The study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with suicide attempts among secondary school-going adolescents in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania. The study used data from two repeated regional school-b...

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Main Authors: Jackline Shirima, Lisbeth Mhando, Rehema Mavura, Innocent B. Mboya, James S. Ngocho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-03-01
Series:Behavioral Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/13/4/288
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author Jackline Shirima
Lisbeth Mhando
Rehema Mavura
Innocent B. Mboya
James S. Ngocho
author_facet Jackline Shirima
Lisbeth Mhando
Rehema Mavura
Innocent B. Mboya
James S. Ngocho
author_sort Jackline Shirima
collection DOAJ
description Suicide attempts among adolescents are common and can lead to death. The study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with suicide attempts among secondary school-going adolescents in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania. The study used data from two repeated regional school-based student health surveys (RSHS), conducted in 2019 (Survey 1) and 2022 (Survey 2). Data were analyzed for secondary school students aged 13 to 17 years from four districts of the Kilimanjaro region. The study included 4188 secondary school-going adolescents: 3182 in Survey 1 and 1006 in Survey 2. The mean age in Survey 1 was 14 years and the median age in Survey 2 was 17 years (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The overall prevalence of suicide attempts was 3.3% (3.0% in Survey 1 and 4.2% in Survey 2). Female adolescents had higher odds of suicide attempts (aOR = 3.0, 95% CI 1.2–5.5), as did those who felt lonely (aOR = 2.0, 95% CI 1.0–3.6), had ever been worried (aOR = 1.9, 95% CI 1.0–3.5), or had ever been bullied (aOR = 2.2, 95% CI 1.2–4.1). Suicidal attempts are prevalent among secondary school-going adolescents in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania. In-school programs should be established to prevent such attempts.
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spelling doaj.art-2eb02d7cbdaf4881bd8c40c48516647a2023-11-17T18:20:39ZengMDPI AGBehavioral Sciences2076-328X2023-03-0113428810.3390/bs13040288Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern TanzaniaJackline Shirima0Lisbeth Mhando1Rehema Mavura2Innocent B. Mboya3James S. Ngocho4Department of Epidemiology and Applied Biostatistics, Institute of Public Health, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi P.O. Box 2240, TanzaniaDepartment of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Institute of Public Health, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi P.O. Box 2240, TanzaniaDepartment of Community Health, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center, Moshi P.O. Box 3010, TanzaniaDepartment of Epidemiology and Applied Biostatistics, Institute of Public Health, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi P.O. Box 2240, TanzaniaDepartment of Epidemiology and Applied Biostatistics, Institute of Public Health, Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi P.O. Box 2240, TanzaniaSuicide attempts among adolescents are common and can lead to death. The study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with suicide attempts among secondary school-going adolescents in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania. The study used data from two repeated regional school-based student health surveys (RSHS), conducted in 2019 (Survey 1) and 2022 (Survey 2). Data were analyzed for secondary school students aged 13 to 17 years from four districts of the Kilimanjaro region. The study included 4188 secondary school-going adolescents: 3182 in Survey 1 and 1006 in Survey 2. The mean age in Survey 1 was 14 years and the median age in Survey 2 was 17 years (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The overall prevalence of suicide attempts was 3.3% (3.0% in Survey 1 and 4.2% in Survey 2). Female adolescents had higher odds of suicide attempts (aOR = 3.0, 95% CI 1.2–5.5), as did those who felt lonely (aOR = 2.0, 95% CI 1.0–3.6), had ever been worried (aOR = 1.9, 95% CI 1.0–3.5), or had ever been bullied (aOR = 2.2, 95% CI 1.2–4.1). Suicidal attempts are prevalent among secondary school-going adolescents in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania. In-school programs should be established to prevent such attempts.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/13/4/288suicide attemptadolescentsglobal school-based student health surveyregional school-based student health surveyKilimanjaroTanzania
spellingShingle Jackline Shirima
Lisbeth Mhando
Rehema Mavura
Innocent B. Mboya
James S. Ngocho
Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
Behavioral Sciences
suicide attempt
adolescents
global school-based student health survey
regional school-based student health survey
Kilimanjaro
Tanzania
title Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
title_full Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
title_fullStr Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
title_full_unstemmed Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
title_short Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania
title_sort suicidal attempts among secondary school going adolescents in kilimanjaro region northern tanzania
topic suicide attempt
adolescents
global school-based student health survey
regional school-based student health survey
Kilimanjaro
Tanzania
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/13/4/288
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AT rehemamavura suicidalattemptsamongsecondaryschoolgoingadolescentsinkilimanjaroregionnortherntanzania
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