The impact of psychosocial work conditions on attempted and completed suicide among western Canadian sawmill workers

• Published in: Scandinavian journal of public health Vol. 35; no. 3; pp. 265 - 271
• Main Authors: OSTRY, ALECK, MAGGI, STEFANIA, TANSEY, JAMES, DUNN, JAMES, HERSHLER, RUTH, CHEN, LISA, LOUIE, A. M., HERTZMAN, CLYDE
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England Taylor & Francis 01.01.2007; Sage Publications; Sage
• Subjects: Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Biological and medical sciences; British Columbia - epidemiology; British Columbia - ethnology; Cohort Studies; Forestry; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; Occupational Exposure - adverse effects; Occupational medicine; ORIGINAL ARTICLES; Parasuicide; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Psychosocial environment; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Social Support; Socioeconomic Factors; Suicide; Suicide - ethnology; Suicide - psychology; Suicide - statistics & numerical data; Suicide, Attempted - ethnology; Suicide, Attempted - psychology; Suicide, Attempted - statistics & numerical data; Surveys and Questionnaires; Western Canada; Work environment; Workplace; Canada; North America; America; British Columbia; Canada; sawmill workers; Attempted suicide; psychosocial work conditions; completed suicide; Human; Psychosocial factor; Suicide; Suicide attempt; Saw mill; Work; Worker; Social aspect; Occupational medicine; Public health
• ISSN: 1403-4948; 1651-1905
• DOI: 10.1080/14034940601048091

Background: Using a large cohort of western Canadian sawmill workers (n=28,794), the association between psychosocial work conditions and attempted and completed suicide was investigated. Methods: Records of attempted and completed suicide were accessed through a provincial hospital discharge registry to identify cases that were then matched using a nested case control method. Psychosocial work conditions were estimated by expert raters using the demand-control model. Univariate and multivariate conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the association between work conditions and suicide. Results: In multivariate models, controlling for sociodemographic (marital status, ethnicity) and occupational confounders (job mobility and duration), low psychological demand was associated with increased odds for completed suicide, and low social support was associated with increased odds for attempted suicides. Conclusions: This study indicate that workers with poor psychosocial working conditions may be at increased risk of both attempted and completed suicide.