Mental Health Systems and Policy in Low- and Middle-Income Countries – serie

This book is about suicidal behavior in Bangladesh. Suicidal behavior is a major; however, an under-researched public health problem in Bangladesh. The country still lacks a national suicide surveillance system, a national suicide prevention strategy. Therefore, access to quality suicide data for policymaking is a fundamental challenge. There are wide variations in the suicide rate as per different studies and international reports. Additionally, there is a strong possibility of under-reporting of suicidal behavior in the country. Suicide attempt is a criminal offense in the legal system of the country that certainly hinders the disclosure of suicidal behavior. A high level of stigma, lower level of suicide literacy, enduring culture, Muslim majority religious background, criminality badge, patriarchal social norms, and intimate partner violence affect suicide prevention in Bangladesh. Fortunately, an increased number of studies are coming out in the current decade exploring multiple aspects of suicidal behavior indicting that social factors have a prominent role than the mental disorder which is a noticeable difference in the country from the Western findings. Therefore, this book aims to discuss suicidal behavior in Bangladesh based on existing evidence and expertise covering epidemiology, sources of quality data, local culture, forensic and legal aspects, health and mental health care, media and suicide, crisis management system, suicide prevention, and status of evidence in the country. This book is the first of its kind to address multiple aspects of suicidal behavior in Bangladesh.