Prevention of suicidal behavior in children and adolescents from primary care

Objective: suicide is a serious public health problem which has a higher incidence in children and adolescents; however, it is preventable through timely interventions; therefore, it is essential to find suicide prevention programs in these age groups from Primary Health Care. Methodology: a review of the literature about suicide prevention from primary care was carried out by searching official documents and articles in the Web of Science, Clinicalkey, PubMed and Science Direct databases. 35 documents were selected and organized into 4 categories: family, environment, health personnel and prevention in primary care. Results: through the review were found family-focused programs that help improve the parent-child relationship and teach parents about lethal practices and how to restrict their access. On the other hand, there are interventions where health personnel are trained to identify, diagnose and timely treat mental illnesses or situations that predispose to suicidal behavior; and likewise, those who are already at risk or have previous suicide attempts are intervened. Conclusion: there are multiple strategies and interventions to recognize and respond to warning signs of suicide. Therefore, it is important that primary care health personnel identify and have the capacity to carry out the initial management of patients at risk of suicide and can provide education to the minor's support network regarding strategies to deal with these behaviors.