Using NVDRS data for suicide prevention: promising practices in seven states

Abstract

Objectives: This article describes how seven states participating in a new public health surveillance system for violent death in the US, the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), have used data to support local suicide prevention activities. Setting: The NVDRS is unique in that it augments death certificate data with event and circumstance information from death investigation reports filed by coroners, medical examiners, and law enforcement. These data illuminate why the victim ended his or her life, fatal injury patterns, and toxicological findings at death. Results: Current suicide prevention efforts using these data fall into three categories: describing the problem of suicide and identifying opportunities for intervention; collaborating on statewide suicide prevention plans; and forming new partnerships for targeted prevention initiatives. Taken together, these three areas show early promise for state suicide prevention efforts. Conclusions: In each of the states, NVDRS data analyses are being shared with injury prevention colleagues, suicide prevention planning groups and policymakers, and adapted to respond to unique state and local suicide problems. A powerful surveillance tool, the NVDRS is bringing new clarity and direction to these state-based efforts. The NVDRS can serve as a model for other countries looking to establish timely suicide surveillance systems and data driven prevention strategies.

Characteristics of adult male and female firearm suicide decedents: findings from the National Violent Death Reporting System

“…Secondly, the accuracy and completeness of proxy-derived information may lead to misclassifications or under-reporting. However, previous studies have shown that information obtained from informants may be sufficiently valid and reliable for analytical purposes 36 37. Thirdly, ATF trace data were available for only a small number of suicide decedents (5%).…”

Altitude is a risk factor for completed suicide in bipolar disorder

“…Accuracy and completeness of proxy-driven information from the NVDRS may lead to misclassifications or underreporting. However, previous studies using information obtained from the NVDRS has shown that it was valid, reliable, and sufficient for analysis [45, 46]. The NVDRS dataset did not contain information about availability or access to mental health care services.…”

Suicide Risk in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities: 2003–2011

“…Eighteen states host these programs, and in 2003 the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner implemented the program, making Virginia the first jurisdiction with a statewide medical examiner system to do so. 27,28 …”

“…The text of these narratives is abstracted from Office of the Chief Medical Examiner records, law enforcement interviews with key informants (e.g., family members), and death scene investigations (e.g., suicide notes) through standardized procedures. 25–27 These narratives are intended to provide additional context regarding the contributions of recent events, interpersonal factors, and mental and physical health to each death. We searched all VVDRS narratives with the following terms: “assisted,” “continuing care,” “convalescent,” “group home,” “hospice,” “institution,” “long-term,” “long term,” “nursing,” “old folks,” “retirement,” and “senior,” and we abstracted the common themes from narratives that referenced at least 1 of these words (n =109 decedents).…”