Homeless people are 30 times more likely to present at hospital emergency departments with injuries caused by self-harm than those living at a fixed residence, a new study suggests.
Although the homeless population made up about 0.1 per cent of the total population in Ireland, they accounted for 3.9 per cent of all presentations of self-harm between 2010 and 2014.
Those who were homeless at presentation to hospital were more likely to be male and to present with highly lethal methods of self-harm.
There are just under 9,000 people homeless in Ireland, according to the latest figures from Focus Ireland.
The findings come from a collaborative study between the National Suicide Research Foundation and the HSE’s Department of Public Health which was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders. The study examined self-harm among the homeless population, using data from the National Self-Harm Registry Ireland for the period 2010-2014.
Urban centres
There was a greater risk of presenting with repeated acts of self-harm among the homeless, while the impact of self-harm among the homeless was higher in urban centres than elsewhere in the country.
Almost three-quarters of self-harm presentations among the homeless were among people living in Dublin or Cork city.
The overall number of annual self-harm presentations in the homeless increased from 305 in 2010 to 513 in 2014.
The National Suicide Research Foundation said the findings indicate that the homeless are a “particularly vulnerable population” and enhanced efforts to prevent self-harm among this group are required.
It also recommended cross-sectoral changes to health and housing policy to prevent homelessness and improve access to appropriate care and enhanced training for healthcare and community-based professionals to increase awareness of self-harm and related mental health and social issues.
