Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland
Objectives Childhood contact with social services is associated with adult suicide risk, but little is known about self-harm and suicidal ideation, which are recognised predictors of suicide. This study compares self-harm (SH) and suicidal ideation (SI) in young adults with childhood history of soc...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Swansea University
2023-09-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Population Data Science |
| Online Access: | https://ijpds.org/article/view/2324 |
| _version_ | 1797423948156108800 |
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| author | Sarah McKenna Dermot O'Reilly Aideen Maguire |
| author_facet | Sarah McKenna Dermot O'Reilly Aideen Maguire |
| author_sort | Sarah McKenna |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Objectives
Childhood contact with social services is associated with adult suicide risk, but little is known about self-harm and suicidal ideation, which are recognised predictors of suicide. This study compares self-harm (SH) and suicidal ideation (SI) in young adults with childhood history of social services contact to unexposed peers.
Method
A longitudinal, population-wide study of all children born 1985-1993 in Northern Ireland (NI) linking primary care registrations to social services data (1985-2015) and a national registry capturing all SH and SI presentations to the 12 Emergency Departments in NI (2012-2015). Multilevel logistic regression models estimated the association between level of contact with social services in childhood (no contact; referred but assessed as not in need (NIN); child in need (CIN); and child in care (CIC)) and SH, SI and any SH/SI, accounting for confounders and the amount of variation attributable to clustering by Health and Social Care Trust.
Results
The cohort comprised 253,495 individuals (ages 18-30 years) alive and registered with a general practitioner during follow-up. Of the cohort, 4,026 presented with SH and 1,669 with SI. Individuals with a childhood history of social services contact comprised 10.8% of the cohort (2.9% NIN; 6.5% CIN; and 1.4% CIC) yet accounted for 40.9% of SH/SI cases. Likelihood of SH, SI, and any SH/SI increased stepwise with level of contact with social services. After full adjustment, young adults deemed NIN in childhood were three times more likely to present with SH/SI (OR 3.45 [95% CI 3.07-3.88]), former CIN five times more likely (OR 5.33 [95% CI 4.97-5.74]), and former CIC ten times more likely (OR 10.49 [95% CI 9.45-11.66]), relative to those with no contact.
Conclusion
Adults with a childhood history of social services contact, including those assessed as not in need, account for a disproportionate number of self-harm and suicidal ideation cases. Timely and targeted interventions aimed at this population have the potential to reduce the burden of self-harm and suicide
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| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:55:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f26aa35b5ec64364bf78da67f270f810 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2399-4908 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:55:11Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | Swansea University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Population Data Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-f26aa35b5ec64364bf78da67f270f8102023-12-03T01:18:17ZengSwansea UniversityInternational Journal of Population Data Science2399-49082023-09-018210.23889/ijpds.v8i2.2324Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern IrelandSarah McKenna0Dermot O'Reilly1Aideen Maguire2Administrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland, Belfast, United Kingdom; Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, United KingdomAdministrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland, Belfast, United Kingdom; Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, United KingdomQueen's University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom Objectives Childhood contact with social services is associated with adult suicide risk, but little is known about self-harm and suicidal ideation, which are recognised predictors of suicide. This study compares self-harm (SH) and suicidal ideation (SI) in young adults with childhood history of social services contact to unexposed peers. Method A longitudinal, population-wide study of all children born 1985-1993 in Northern Ireland (NI) linking primary care registrations to social services data (1985-2015) and a national registry capturing all SH and SI presentations to the 12 Emergency Departments in NI (2012-2015). Multilevel logistic regression models estimated the association between level of contact with social services in childhood (no contact; referred but assessed as not in need (NIN); child in need (CIN); and child in care (CIC)) and SH, SI and any SH/SI, accounting for confounders and the amount of variation attributable to clustering by Health and Social Care Trust. Results The cohort comprised 253,495 individuals (ages 18-30 years) alive and registered with a general practitioner during follow-up. Of the cohort, 4,026 presented with SH and 1,669 with SI. Individuals with a childhood history of social services contact comprised 10.8% of the cohort (2.9% NIN; 6.5% CIN; and 1.4% CIC) yet accounted for 40.9% of SH/SI cases. Likelihood of SH, SI, and any SH/SI increased stepwise with level of contact with social services. After full adjustment, young adults deemed NIN in childhood were three times more likely to present with SH/SI (OR 3.45 [95% CI 3.07-3.88]), former CIN five times more likely (OR 5.33 [95% CI 4.97-5.74]), and former CIC ten times more likely (OR 10.49 [95% CI 9.45-11.66]), relative to those with no contact. Conclusion Adults with a childhood history of social services contact, including those assessed as not in need, account for a disproportionate number of self-harm and suicidal ideation cases. Timely and targeted interventions aimed at this population have the potential to reduce the burden of self-harm and suicide https://ijpds.org/article/view/2324 |
| spellingShingle | Sarah McKenna Dermot O'Reilly Aideen Maguire Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland International Journal of Population Data Science |
| title | Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland |
| title_full | Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland |
| title_fullStr | Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland |
| title_full_unstemmed | Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland |
| title_short | Childhood contact with social services and self-harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood: A population-wide cohort study in Northern Ireland |
| title_sort | childhood contact with social services and self harm and suicidal ideation in young adulthood a population wide cohort study in northern ireland |
| url | https://ijpds.org/article/view/2324 |
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