Suicide ideation, planning and attempts: results from the Israel National Health Survey.

OBJECTIVES To establish the lifetime prevalence rates of suicide ideations, plans and attempts, and to identify the conditional risks of suicide attempts following the prior onset of suicide ideation or planning. METHOD A representative sample extracted from the National Population Register of non-institutionalized residents, aged 21 or older, were interviewed at home between May 2003 and April 2004 using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview which included questions on suicide ideations, plans and attempts The final sample included 4,859 respondents. RESULTS About 5.5% of the adults reported that they have thought of suicide, and 1.4% that they have attempted to commit suicide during their lifetime. The year following the onset of ideation constitutes the year of highest risk for suicide attempt. CONCLUSION The risk of suicide attempt is highest among individuals with mental health disorders, while the transition from suicide ideation to suicide attempt among them is more likely to be planned. The youngest age group has the highest odds of suicide attempts and the highest odds of impulsive suicide attempts.