Effectiveness of partial restriction of access to means in jumping suicide: lessons from four bridges in three countries

Abstract

AIMS: Restricting access to means by installing physical barriers has been shown to be the most effective intervention in preventing jumping suicides on bridges. However, little is known about the effectiveness of partial restriction with interventions that still allow jumping from the bridge. METHODS: This study used a quasi-experimental design. Public sites that met our inclusion criteria were identified using Google search and data on jumping suicides on Bridge A (South Korea), Bridges B and C (the United States) and Bridge D (Canada) were obtained from the relevant datasets. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were estimated using Poisson regressions comparing suicide numbers before and after..