The Psychological Processes involved in seeking help from a GP
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploring the Psychological Processes involved in seeking help from a GP for young people who have been at risk of suicide
IRAS ID
254747
Contact name
Jack Farr
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Birmingham
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 10 months, 30 days
Research summary
This research project aims to understand how, why and what happens when young people seek support from their GP when they are experiencing suicidal thoughts. By understanding the processes involved in seeking support, we hope that future training for GPs will take into account the factors that are important to young people. Current research suggests that GPs have requested specialist training as they do not feel confident in assessing and managing suicide risk (Leavey et al., 2017; Michail & Tait, 2018) and this further reflects young peoples views that GPs only dealt with physical illness and that they lacked training in mental health (Biddle et al., 2006). It is hoped by interviewing young people about seeking help from a GP, we can improve the support that is offered to young people.
The study will use semi-structured interviews to give young people the chance to talk openly about how, why and what happened when they looked for support from their GP. The interviews will then by analysed to look for key themes that are present across the interviews. Research into suicide by young people is important because suicide is the second highest cause of death for young people (WHO, 2014) and the national strategy for the prevention of suicide in England has highlighted the importance of early identification and management of young people who are seen to be at risk of suicide (Department of Health, 2014). It is hoped this research can contribute to improving care for young people at risk of suicide and to give young people a chance to talk about their own experiences. Furthermore, it is suggested that research that asks people to talk about suicide should be encouraged as current research suggests that this might in fact reduce, rather than increase suicidal risk (Dazzie et al, 2014).
REC name
West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/WM/0104
Date of REC Opinion
24 May 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion