Research Article

Coexistence of Substance Abuse among Emergency Department Patients Presenting with Suicidal Ideation

Table 1

Demographic characteristics of patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) for suicidality.

Characteristic (%)

Total427
Gender
 Male228 (53)
 Female199 (47)
Age (years)
 Average34
 Range13–84
Payor type
 Medicare59 (14)
 Medicaid216 (51)
 Private142 (33)
 Self-pay6 (1.1)
 Uninsured3 (0.7)
 Other1 (0.2)
Coexisting substance abuse
 Yes250 (59)
 No177 (41)
Underlying psychiatric diagnosis
 Yes392 (92)
 No35 (8)
ED disposition
 Admit253 (59)
 Discharge173 (40)
 Eloped1 (1)