Seoul National University Hospital Develops Standard Treatment Guidelines for Suicide Prevention...Obtain Ministry of Health and Welfare certification
Jan 14, 2025
Developed by Professor Ahn Yong-min's team at Seoul National University Hospital's Department of Psychiatry, the 'Standard Treatment Guidelines for Suicide Prevention at Psychiatry Sites' recently obtained certification from the Ministry of Health and Welfare for its effectiveness and grounds for suicide prevention.
The 「Suicide Prevention Program Certification System」 operated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation is a system that examines and certifies the objectivity and effectiveness of suicide prevention programs. Certification is divided into preliminary certification and identification, and only programs that have proven evidence and effectiveness through academic research can be reviewed for identification. Certified programs are supported by the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation to spread and distribute nationwide. Professor Ahn's team is the first case in which a guideline/recommendation program designed for experts has obtained an identification card.
The Acceptance Modification Standard Treatment Guidelines for Suicide Prevention in Psychiatric Care Sites' is a Korean-style suicide prevention clinical guideline that systematically presents mental disease treatments that lower the risk of suicide. Based on existing suicide prevention treatment guidelines in the United States, Spain, and Brazil, it was developed as an adaptation method that is modified to fit the domestic medical system through literature review and expert agreement. With Professor Ahn Yong-min at the center, 15 developers and 11 outside advisors participated in the development, including Professor Yang Jeong-hoon of the Department of Mental Health Medicine at Sejong Chungnam National University Hospital and Professor Lee Won-young of the Chung-Ang University of Medicine.
As there are studies showing that more than 90% of suicide deaths suffered from mental illness, mental illness is closely related to suicide. In particular, patients with major depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, and schizophrenia, who are known to have a higher risk of suicide than other diseases, need to manage suicide risk at the same time as psychiatric treatment. However, in the meantime, there has been no standard medical guidelines for preventing and treating patients' suicidal behavior in the Department of Mental Health in Korea.
These guidelines are largely divided into drug treatment and non-drug treatment. Each guideline consists of treatment recommendations according to the patient's age and disease, literature evidence, domestic acceptance and applicability evaluation, and expert consensus. Each treatment recommendation is given evidence levels (A to D) and recommendation grades (I, IIa, IIb, -). Based on this, psychiatrists can find and apply the most objective and effective suicide prevention treatment to patients.
For example, when treating patients with adult bipolar disorder at risk of suicide, a specialist can refer to this guideline to establish a drug treatment plan to prevent suicide by referring first to the treatment recommendation of 'Lithium can be used in adult bipolar disorder' with the highest evidence level (A) and recommendation level (I). However, considering the complexity of the actual clinical field that the guidelines do not reflect, the research team explained that even treatment not recommended in the recommendation can be applied depending on the situation.
The research team emphasized that this treatment guideline will establish itself as the first standard treatment model in Korea to prevent suicide behavior of mentally ill patients, and will be able to help both psychiatrists and patients.
Professor Ahn Yong-min (Department of Mental Health and Medical Sciences) said, `It is meaningful to develop the first suicide prevention treatment guidelines in Korea certified by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.' `We hope that this guidelines, which gathered the knowledge of numerous experts, will provide effective standard treatment for high-risk suicide groups and further contribute to a reduction in the suicide rate in Korea.'
On the other hand, this treatment guideline was developed as part of a research project called 「Long-term follow-up investigation of major mental diseases and development of policy utilization strategies」 supported by the National Mental Health Center, and will be educated and promoted around mental health welfare centers and hospital networks nationwide.
The 「Suicide Prevention Program Certification System」 operated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation is a system that examines and certifies the objectivity and effectiveness of suicide prevention programs. Certification is divided into preliminary certification and identification, and only programs that have proven evidence and effectiveness through academic research can be reviewed for identification. Certified programs are supported by the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation to spread and distribute nationwide. Professor Ahn's team is the first case in which a guideline/recommendation program designed for experts has obtained an identification card.
The Acceptance Modification Standard Treatment Guidelines for Suicide Prevention in Psychiatric Care Sites' is a Korean-style suicide prevention clinical guideline that systematically presents mental disease treatments that lower the risk of suicide. Based on existing suicide prevention treatment guidelines in the United States, Spain, and Brazil, it was developed as an adaptation method that is modified to fit the domestic medical system through literature review and expert agreement. With Professor Ahn Yong-min at the center, 15 developers and 11 outside advisors participated in the development, including Professor Yang Jeong-hoon of the Department of Mental Health Medicine at Sejong Chungnam National University Hospital and Professor Lee Won-young of the Chung-Ang University of Medicine.
As there are studies showing that more than 90% of suicide deaths suffered from mental illness, mental illness is closely related to suicide. In particular, patients with major depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, and schizophrenia, who are known to have a higher risk of suicide than other diseases, need to manage suicide risk at the same time as psychiatric treatment. However, in the meantime, there has been no standard medical guidelines for preventing and treating patients' suicidal behavior in the Department of Mental Health in Korea.
These guidelines are largely divided into drug treatment and non-drug treatment. Each guideline consists of treatment recommendations according to the patient's age and disease, literature evidence, domestic acceptance and applicability evaluation, and expert consensus. Each treatment recommendation is given evidence levels (A to D) and recommendation grades (I, IIa, IIb, -). Based on this, psychiatrists can find and apply the most objective and effective suicide prevention treatment to patients.
For example, when treating patients with adult bipolar disorder at risk of suicide, a specialist can refer to this guideline to establish a drug treatment plan to prevent suicide by referring first to the treatment recommendation of 'Lithium can be used in adult bipolar disorder' with the highest evidence level (A) and recommendation level (I). However, considering the complexity of the actual clinical field that the guidelines do not reflect, the research team explained that even treatment not recommended in the recommendation can be applied depending on the situation.
The research team emphasized that this treatment guideline will establish itself as the first standard treatment model in Korea to prevent suicide behavior of mentally ill patients, and will be able to help both psychiatrists and patients.
Professor Ahn Yong-min (Department of Mental Health and Medical Sciences) said, `It is meaningful to develop the first suicide prevention treatment guidelines in Korea certified by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.' `We hope that this guidelines, which gathered the knowledge of numerous experts, will provide effective standard treatment for high-risk suicide groups and further contribute to a reduction in the suicide rate in Korea.'
On the other hand, this treatment guideline was developed as part of a research project called 「Long-term follow-up investigation of major mental diseases and development of policy utilization strategies」 supported by the National Mental Health Center, and will be educated and promoted around mental health welfare centers and hospital networks nationwide.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
