Trends in, and Risk Factors for, Suicide in Public Places: A 17-Year Case–Control Study in Australia

Abstract

Objective: To examine factors associated with the choice of public location over home to die by suicide. Methods: This study used a case–control design. Data on suicides that occurred between 2001 and 2017 in Australia were extracted from the National Coronial Information System. Cases were suicides that occurred in public places and controls were suicides that occurred at home. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the associations between suicide location and several sociodemographic variables, depending on whether hotel rooms were included in or excluded from public places. Results: In total, 25.2% of 42,656 suicides occurred in public places including hotel rooms, 69.3% at hom..