Objective: To study the mode of attempted deliberate self-harm (DSH) in patients presenting to the Emergency Departments (ED) of public and private hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan.
Design: A cross sectional study.
Place and duration of study: Aga Khan University Hospital Karachi, Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre Karachi and Civil Hospital Karachi; March 2011 to February 2012.
Subjects and methods: One hundred DSH cases from ED of a private sector hospital were compared with 101 patients from two public sector hospitals.
Results: DSH patients in the private hospital were mostly females (70%), had higher level of education (32%), did not share their problems (67%) with someone and had more mental disorders (28%). Patients from public hospitals were treated more for physical illnesses compared to private facility. Organophosphorus poisoning (90%) was a common mode of DSH in patients presenting to public hospitals; however significant number of organophosphorus poisoning (40%) was also seen in private hospital besides the benzodiazepine overdose (32%).
Conclusion: Emergency Physicians working in the EDs, both public and private sector hospitals of Karachi, should have adequate knowledge of managing organophosphorus poisoning. As more and more cases are presenting to the EDs, there should be a public health initiative to control the illegal sale and availability of such compounds in Pakistan.
Keywords: Deliberate self-harm; Emergency Departments; Hospitals; Karachi.