Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
Volume 51, Issue 3, 2006, Pages 155-159

Profile of a Metropolitan North American Immigrant Suicidal Adolescent Population (Article) (Open Access)

Greenfield B.* , Rousseau C. , Slatkoff J. , Lewkowski M. , Davis M. , Dube S. , Lashley M.E. , Morin I. , Dray P. , Harnden B.
  • a Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Que., Canada, Emergency Room Follow-up Team, Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada, 3450 Drummond # 1114, Montreal, Que. H2G 1Y2, Canada
  • b Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Que., Canada, Transcultural Child Psychiatry, Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • c Department of Psychology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
  • d Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • e McGill University, Montreal, Que., Canada, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • f Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • g Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada, John Abbott College, St. Anne de Bellevue, Que., Canada, Transcultural Psychiatry, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • h Consultation Service, Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • i Marital and Family Therapy Program, Argyle Institute of Human Relations, Montreal, Que., Canada
  • j Faculty, Concordia University, Canada, Faculty of Creative Arts Therapy, Emergency Room Follow-Up Team, Montreal Children's Hospital, Montreal, Que., Canada

Abstract

Objective: Canadian immigrant adolescents have a lower suicide rate than their nonimmigrant peers. We conducted a hypothesis-generating analysis to determine whether this lower rate correlated with level of drug use and (or) with diagnostic and demographic characteristics of Canadian immigrant adolescents presenting to an emergency room for crisis assessment. Method: Known risk factors for suicide were compared among immigrant youth, North American youth, and a culturally mixed group of youth at baseline and at 6-month follow-up. Results: The immigrant group was only differentiated by a lower rate of reported drug use. Conclusion: The lower rate of reported drug use at the time of crisis may contribute to the lower suicide rate among immigrants.

Author Keywords

Adolescent Suicide Immigrant

Index Keywords

drug use Canada Suicide major clinical study crisis intervention risk factor immigrant socioeconomics adolescence ethnology disease association demography hypothesis Article risk assessment human North America Adolescent
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-33645550966&doi=10.1177%2f070674370605100305&partnerID=40&md5=3769b942c4404eacae8d434265cab241
DOI: 10.1177/070674370605100305
ISSN: 07067437
Cited by: 9
Original Language: English