BMJ  2005;331:966 (22 October), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7522.966-d

Letter

Postcards from the edge

GPs have role in reducing repetition of self harm

The first 100% of the full text of this article appears below.

EDITOR—Interested general practitioners may be the key to providing continuity of care to patients who self harm.^{1 2}

I am a general practitioner working in an inner city practice that serves many university students. The hospital emergency department sends a notification of attendance to the general practitioner of all patients who visit hospital having deliberately harmed themselves. Our general practice automatically sends letters inviting these patients to make a double appointment to see one of us so that we can provide local follow up and support. We asked the emergency department to be more precise when describing lacerations—accidental or deliberate—so we could target the correct group. About half the patients respond. About half the patients are already known to us as having mental health problems.

Leicester LE1 9BH iancross@hotmail.com

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Competing interests: None declared.

1. Hatcher S, Owens D. Do get in touch. BMJ 2005;331: 788-9. (8 October.)[Free Full Text]
2. Carter GL, Clover K, Whyte IM, Dawson AH, D'Este C. Postcards from the EDge project: randomised controlled trial of an intervention using postcards to reduce repetition of hospital treated deliberate self poisoning. BMJ 2005;331: 805. (8 October.)[Abstract/Free Full Text]

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Do get in touch

Simon Hatcher and David Owens
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