suicide is a significant public health issue globally. self-harm (sh) is major risk factorsfor later suicide death. the messages left by individuals who self-harm provide insightinto important information about the psychopathological state they are in, and help usto better identify the seriousness of their episode, and possibly its suicidal intent. thestudy tests the association between suicidal message modality and sociodemographicvariables. the study focus on the association between message modality and level ofsuicidal intent. Data were obtained from the French-speaking swiss Programme formonitoring self-harm, including 2341 episodes of sh (N = 2012 participants) byindividuals aged 18 and older to emergency departments. the data were obtainedduring clinical interviews conducted as part of the usual practice. sociodemographicand clinical data were analyzed using t-tests, Chi-square tests, and Bayesian modelcomparisons. of 2341 episodes, 1100 (47%) involved a message, while 1241 (53%) didnot. Common messages were oral statements (14.3%), sMs (7.3%), phone calls (6.4%),and handwritten letters (5.7%). no significant gender differences were observed.intentionality and severity/lethality level was higher for letters than for other messages.individuals leaving handwritten letters were older and more likely to have clear suicidalintent (79.3%) compared to those leaving electronic messages (55.5%), oral statements(43.4%), or no messages (48.7%). leaving handwritten letters are associated with highersuicidal intent and severity/lethality level compared to other modalities. Understandingmessage modalities can inform clinical care strategies. Further research shouldqualitatively examine message content (e.g. thematic/content analysis)
