How do health care services help and hinder recovery after a suicide attempt? A qualitative analysis of Finnish service user perspectives
Open accessAbstract
Background: Suicide attempt survivors are at high risk of re-attempts and suicide death. Previous research has shown that service users’ experiences of post-attempt care are related to future treatment engagement and re-attempts. In-depth understanding of how current services meet service users’ needs in the period immediately following a suicide attempt is thus imperative for the development of more effective tertiary prevention practices in real-life health care systems. Method: In this qualitative study, Finnish suicide attempt survivors’ experiences of and perspectives on mental health services were explored through a semi-structured interview. Participants were seven female and seven male service users interviewed 3–6 months after the index suicide attempt. A conventional content analysis of these service user interviews is presented. Results: Participants’ experiences of care ranged from helping to hindering recovery. Seven key aspects of services were described as helpful when present and hindering when absent. These included (1) meeting the service user as worthy of help, (2) supporting the exploration of personal meanings, (3) supporting the exploration of suicidality, (4) psychological continuity and predictability, (5) offering a responsive partnership in navigating recovery, (6) inviting service user involvement in medication decisions, and (7) accounting for service users’ relational context. Conclusions: Current health care services are inconsistent in meeting suicide attempt survivors’ subjective needs, leaving clear room for improvement in tertiary suicide prevention. To be perceived as meaningful by service users, services should strive to offer opportunities for both biomedical, psychological, and social interventions, with responsivity to individual needs and preferences. A focus on the social aspects of recovery (e.g., offering support to loved ones affected by the suicidal incident; facilitating peer support and social belonging) was most often found to be lacking in current services.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In a previous analysis of the current data, participants evaluated the helpfulness of each service in relation to how well that service recognized and responded to their personal recovery goals and tasks.
“In a previous analysis of the current data, we found that participants evaluated the helpfulness of each service in relation to how well that service recognized and responded to their personal recovery goals and tasks [29].”
From Suicide attempt survivors’ recovery-related agency in the relational context of services: a qualitative analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [29]
Participants often critiqued services for not providing enough support for recovery tasks pertaining to needs of relatedness.
“Second, participants often critiqued services for not providing enough support for recovery tasks pertaining to needs of relatedness [29, 30].”
From Suicide attempt survivors’ recovery-related agency in the relational context of services: a qualitative analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [29]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Three Approaches to Qualitative Content Analysis
Hsieh, H.-F., & Shannon, S. E. (2005) · Qualitative Health Research · doi:10.1177/1049732305276687 · Cited by 44,601 · see citing works
The Need for a New Medical Model: A Challenge for Biomedicine
Engel, G. L. (1977) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.847460 · Cited by 12,887 · see citing works
The Great Psychotherapy Debate: The Evidence for What Makes Psychotherapy Work
Wampold, B. E. (2015) · doi:10.4324/9780203582015 · Cited by 1,773 · see citing works
Qualitative Research in Counselling and Psychotherapy
McLeod, J. (2001) · doi:10.4135/9781849209663 · Cited by 1,166 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Ethical concerns include recognition of both researcher positioning and procedures enhancing validity [35].”
BackgroundThe experience of recovery from schizophrenia: Towards an empirically validated stage model
Andresen, R., Oades, L., & Caputi, P. (2003) · Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1046/j.1440-1614.2003.01234.x · Cited by 871 · see citing works
Suicide Attempt as a Risk Factor for Completed Suicide: Even More Lethal Than We Knew
Bostwick, J. M., Pabbati, C., Geske, J. R., & McKean, A. J. (2016) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.15070854 · Cited by 759 · see citing works
Why We Need Qualitative Research in Suicidology
Hjelmeland, H., & Knizek, B. L. (2010) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1521/suli.2010.40.1.74 · Cited by 377 · see citing works
Attitudes towards clinical services among people who self-harm: systematic review
Taylor, T. L., Hawton, K., Fortune, S., & Kapur, N. (2009) · British Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1192/bjp.bp.107.046425 · Cited by 256 · see citing works
Benefits and risks of suicide disclosure
Sheehan, L. L., Oexle, N., Armas, S. A., Wan, H. T., Bushman, M., Glover, L., & Lewy, S. A. (2019) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.01.023 · Cited by 121 · see citing works
MacDonald, S., Sampson, C. M., Turley, R., Biddle, L., Ring, N., Begley, R., & Evans, R. (2020) · Qualitative Health Research · doi:10.1177/1049732319886566 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
Discovering the Truth in Attempted Suicide
Michel, K., Maltsberger, J. T., Jobes, D. A., Leenaars, A. A., Orbach, I., Stadler, K., Dey, P., Young, R. A., & Valach, L. (2002) · American Journal of Psychotherapy · doi:10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.2002.56.3.424 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Dunster-Page, C., Haddock, G., Wainwright, L., & Berry, K. (2017) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2017.07.040 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Ethical suicide research: A survey of researchers
Lakeman, R., & Fitzgerald, M. (2009) · International Journal of Mental Health Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1447-0349.2008.00569.x · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Berg, S. H., Rørtveit, K., & Aase, K. (2017) · BMC Health Services Research · doi:10.1186/s12913-017-2023-8 · Cited by 75 · see citing works
ASSIP – Attempted Suicide Short Intervention Program: A Manual for Clinicians
Michel, K., & Gysin-Maillart, A. (2015) · Hogrefe Publishing eBooks · doi:10.1027/00476-000 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Davis, M., Siegel, J., Becker‐Haimes, E. M., Jager‐Hyman, S., Beidas, R. S., Young, J. F., Wislocki, K. E., Futterer, A. C., Mautone, J. A., Buttenheim, A. M., et al. (2021) · Archives of Suicide Research · doi:10.1080/13811118.2021.1982094 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
Providing meaningful care: learning from the experiences of suicidal young men.
Jordan, J., McKenna, H., Keeney, S., Cutcliffe, J. R., Stevenson, C., Slater, P. F., & McGowan, I. (2012) · PubMed · doi:10.1177/1049732312450367 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Jobes, D. A., & Chalker, S. A. (2019) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph16193606 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
The increase of suicide rates: the need for a paradigm shift
Pompili, M. (2018) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(18)31498-3 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Fitzpatrick, S. J., & River, J. (2017) · International Journal of Health Services · doi:10.1177/0020731417716086 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Rains, L. S., Echave, A., Rees, J., Scott, H. R., Taylor, B. L., Broeckelmann, E., Steare, T., Barnett, P., Cooper, C., Jeynes, T., et al. (2021) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0248316 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Suicide attempt survivors’ experiences with mental health care services: A mixed methods study.
Hom, M. A., Albury, E. A., Gomez, M. M., Christensen, K., Stanley, I. H., Stage, D. L., & Joiner, T. E. (2019) · Professional Psychology Research and Practice · doi:10.1037/pro0000265 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
Where is the social in the biopsychosocial model of suicide prevention?
Rodríguez-Otero, J. E., Mouriño, X. C., Meilán-Fernández, D., Pintos-Bailón, S., & Escribano, G. C. (2021) · International Journal of Social Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/00207640211027210 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Treatment received and treatment adequacy of depressive disorders among young adults in Finland
Kasteenpohja, T., MARTTUNEN, M. J., Aalto‐Setälä, T., Perälä, J., Saarni, S. I., & Suvisaari, J. (2015) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-015-0427-8 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
The Finnish National Suicide Prevention Program Evaluated
Kerkhof, A. J. F. M. (1999) · Crisis · doi:10.1027//0227-5910.20.2.50 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Arvilommi, P., Valkonen, J., Lindholm, L. H., Gaily-Luoma, S., Suominen, K. H., Ruishalme, O., Kukkonen, M., Sihvola, H., & Isometsä, E. T. (2022) · Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics · doi:10.1159/000521072 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Self-citationDo Suicide Attempts of Mood Disorder Patients Directly Increase the Risk for a Reattempt?
Aaltonen, K. I., Rosenström, T. H., Jylhä, P. J., Holma, I. A. K., Holma, M., Pallaskorpi, S. K., Riihimäki, K., Suominen, K. H., Vuorilehto, M. S., & Isometsä, E. T. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2020.547791 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Dawn of a new day for mental health systems
Vigo, D. (2021) · International Journal of Mental Health Systems · doi:10.1186/s13033-021-00475-x · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Finland's Contribution to Suicide Prevention
Goldney, R. D. (2004) · Crisis · doi:10.1027/0227-5910.25.2.86 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Arvilommi, P., Valkonen, J., Ruishalme, O., Kukkonen, M., Sihvola, H., Lindholm, L., Suominen, K. H., Gaily-Luoma, S., & Isometsä, E. T. (2021) · Nordic Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1080/08039488.2021.2019916 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 31 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Liu, J., Tong, R., Lu, Z., Wang, Z., Wang, Y., Liu, Y., Yuan, H., Jia, F., Zhang, X., Li, Z., et al. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1398733 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Client-reported impact of the Attempted Suicide Short Intervention Program
Gaily-Luoma, S., Valkonen, J., Holma, J., & Laitila, A. (2024) · Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1080/10503307.2023.2259070 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Self-citationSjöberg, M. D. F., Hed, S., Wiktorsson, S., Berg, A. I., Strand, J., Doering, S., & Wærn, M. (2025) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2025-100636 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Gaily-Luoma, S., Valkonen, J., Holma, J., & Laitila, A. (2024) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-024-20459-z · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“Second, participants often critiqued services for not providing enough support for recovery tasks pertaining to needs of relatedness [29, 30].”
BackgroundMethodSelf-citationLalovic, A., Hyde, M., Bergmans, Y., Morton, M., Razac, A., Nicoll, G., Syms, D., Kennedy, S. H., & Rizvi, S. J. (2025) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2025.119512 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Helme, A. E., Bjørnaas, M. A., Grimholt, T. K., Hofsø, K., Rustøen, T., & Hagen, J. (2025) · Australian Critical Care · doi:10.1016/j.aucc.2025.101484 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Cleofas, J. V. (2026) · Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association · doi:10.1177/10783903261421540 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Barriers to and Facilitators of Mental Health Treatment Among Suicidal Individuals
Steinberg, J. S., & Green, K. L. (2025) · Community Mental Health Journal · doi:10.1007/s10597-024-01446-5
Rex, M., Wærn, M., Carlström, E., Joneken, I., Brezicka, T., & Ali, L. (2025) · Issues in Mental Health Nursing · doi:10.1080/01612840.2025.2512009
Für Gesundheitsfachleute: Es geht um den Menschen im Patienten
Michel, K. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-71653-3_14
Attempted suicide: lived experiences of refugees in Rhino Camp, West Nile, Uganda
OJWOK, R., Akello, J. A., & ACIO, J. (2026) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-026-27871-7
Integrative review of consumers’ experiences of care in emergency departments for suicidality
Cooper, K. L., McFadden, T., Goodhew, M., Razavy, S., Boustany, C., Webb, G., & Murphy, G. (2026) · Emergency Medicine Journal · doi:10.1136/emermed-2026-216460
- Authors
- Gaily-Luoma, S., Valkonen, J., Holma, J., & Laitila, A.
- Affiliations
- University of Jyväskylä (FI)
- MIELI Suomen mielenterveys ry (FI)
- Corresponding author
- Gaily-Luoma, Selma
- Venue
- International Journal of Mental Health Systems
- Published
- 2022-11-16
- Volume
- 16
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 52-52
- ISSN
- 1752-4458 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC9670548
- OpenAlex
- W4309144594
- Cited by
- 12
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1
- FWCI
- 2.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- International Journal of Mental Health Systems (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Jyväskylä University Digital Archive (University of Jyväskylä) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- Emil Aaltosen Säätiö
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychiatric care and mental health services
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health
- Keywords
- suicide attempt survivors, service user experiences, mental health services, recovery, suicidality, medication decision-making, peer support, social belonging, relational context
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
