Research studies in the West have pointed to a hereditary gene in suicidal people. They cited a story of identical twins from a family with suicidal tendencies who were separated at birth. It was later discovered that both had developed suicidal tendencies despite being apart for most of their life.
Commenting on the issue, Saudi writer Huwaidah Khoja said a suicidal patient is, in the first place, a citizen that should be looked after carefully by the government.
She said the government should provide such patients with proper facilities that are different from those given at psychiatric clinics in general hospitals.
“There is a lot of criticism about existing psychiatric facilities. We still remember photos taken at Ishar Hospital in Taif where patients were being tortured by the hospital staff,” she recalled.
Khoja called for the establishment of special hospitals for suicidal patients to be manned by compassionate doctors and nurses.
She added many families shy away from taking mentally ill family members to specialist hospitals and instead keep them at home.
“These families will not be able to control their patients all the time as they may escape to or try to kill themselves at home,” she said.
Khoja called for complete coordination between families, the police and the Health Ministry to look after suicidal patients and prevent them from killing themselves. Psychiatric consultant at Hira General Hospital Dr. Rajab Brisali said the greatest responsibility lies with families who should closely observe such patients, give them their medicines on time and take them for regular checkups.
He said the Ministry of Health is equally responsible. “The ministry should put these patients in special wards and rehabilitate them so they do not try to commit suicide in the future,” he said.
Brisali believes that the police also have a responsibility in this regard. “The role of the police is not to discover the crime after it was committed, but to try to prevent it from happening in the first place,” he added. Brisali also asked the media to play a role in enlightening families on how to deal with suicidal family members and said every time a patient fails in his suicide attempt, he will keep on trying until he succeeds.
He suggested local residential authorities should set up fast response teams to liaise with families, the police and Ministry of Health to follow up attempted suicide cases.
Police spokesman Maj. Abdul Mohsen Al-Miman said the duty of the police is to turn over those who attempt to commit suicide to the Prosecution and Investigation Commission to ascertain whether they are mentally ill or not.
