Study to Assess the Depression and Ideation of Suicide among Terminally III Patients, in Selected Hospitals, Ludhiana, Punjab

The whole span of life includes struggles, achievements, successes, and failures, natural and unnatural distresses. Psychological distress impairs the patient's capacity for pleasure, meaning, and connection; erodes quality of life which is a major risk factor for suicide and for requests to hasten death. Recent studies among terminally ill patients found that a desire for hastened death or an interest in assisted suicide was associated with depression. Depression is often neglected and untreated in the terminally ill which leads to desire for death1. An exploratory study was conducted on 100 terminally ill patients diagnosed with end stage renal disease (ESRD) and cancer in selected hospitals of Ludhiana, Punjab. The result of the study shows that there was a positive correlation between depression and suicide ideation (r = 0.515, p<0.001). Majority (96%) of patients had depression and (85%) had ideation of suicide. Significant association of depression was found with age, family income per month, duration of illness, education level and diagnosis. Significant association of ideation of suicide with variables was found with gender, and family income per month (p<0.05). The study concluded that the terminally ill patients had depression and ideation of suicide. Therefore, guidelines were prepared for them to reduce depression and developing positive attitude towards life.