The National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health (NCISH) latest paper on suicide rates among patients under a Community Treatment Order (CTO) was published on 1 October in BJPsych Open.
The key findings were:
- Suicide under a CTO is rare, accounting for 1% of patient suicides in the community
- Lower suicide rates in patients under a CTO compared to all discharged patients.
- CTOs may reduce suicide risk but their use needs careful balance of patient safety vs. autonomy.