Discussing Suicidality with a Patient
The interview data revealed that the guideline
made nurses more aware of the issue of suicidality.
Nurses mentioned that they were more alert to risk
factors for suicide and tended to respond more thoroughly
to patient symptoms indicative of suicidality.
They scored slightly above neutral about whether
the guideline made them more active in discussing
suicidality (rating 3.06). The nature of the items in
both SAs enabled discussion with patients. The usefulness
of the example questions and phrases in the
assessments was rated quite positively at 3.82 and
3.59 for the basic SA and advanced SA, respectively.
Memorizing the items enabled the nurses to integrate
them into a natural conversation. The overall potential
of the guideline to support nurses in discussing
suicidality with patients is reflected in a rating
of 4.0.
From the interviews, it became clear that some
nurses experienced difficulty in adapting the wording
of the example questions and phrases to their personal
communication style and the actual situation of the
patient. The interviews also made clear that many
nurses did not discuss suicidality with patients if there
were no apparent signs of suicidality. In fact, some
nurses mentioned that they found it difficult to ask a
patient about suicidal thoughts if there were no clear
signs of suicidality