Nearly 2,000 people are hospitalised for self-harm in Leeds every year, with five cases admitted every day.
Figures from Public Health England show there were 1,885 hospitalisations for self-harming in the city in 2018/19.
Self-harm is an expression of personal distress, and while it’s not always the case that someone is attempting suicide when they self-harm, there is a significant and persistent risk of this in the future.
As self-harm episodes that result in admission to hospital only represent the most severe cases, charities warn that these are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to overall rates of self-harm.
Laura Peters, head of advice and information services at Rethink Mental Illness, said: “These statistics don’t show the true scale of self-harm because it’s common for people to self-harm in secret if they feel their thoughts and feelings aren’t acceptable to others.
“Self-harm in whatever form is a sign of mental distress and must be taken seriously, whether it requires hospitalisation or not.
“When seeking help, it’s important that people can turn to someone they can trust.
"A good first step is to talk to your doctor who can refer you to specialist care, and there are a number of self-harm emotional helplines which can provide support remotely.
“The number of people requiring hospital treatment for self-harm is worrying because it is a sign of significant distress.
“It shows the importance of specialist treatment and underlines why self-harm must be taken seriously so that people can receive help before they reach crisis.”
The 1,885 hospital admissions for self harm in Leeds in the last year is up from 1,816 in 2017/18, and means there were 23 admissions for every 10,000 people living in the city.
That’s higher than the national average of 19 admissions for self harm for every 10,000 people.
Of the total seen in the last year, 1,210 cases were women and girls, and 675 boys and men.
Charities say more needs to be done to support people before they end up in hospital.
Chris O’Sullivan, head of workplace wellbeing at the Mental Health Foundation, said: “It’s always better if we can support people before their need becomes a crisis.
“Sadly we’ve seen community services like charities and youth work impacted by cuts, and mental health services, particularly for young people, face pressures to reach people before crisis.
“In an emergency, an A&E department is the appropriate place to get help for self-harm or for any mental health crisis.
"That said, A&E departments are often loud, busy and fast paced – and if you are distressed that can be a challenging environment.
“We need to make sure emergency services and A&E departments can support people who self-harm to get treatment, and to access appropriate services in the community and in the health service.
“We also need to equip teachers, youth workers and other people like employers to be able to support people who self-harm without stigma or judgement.”
Nationally, there were 108,803 hospitalisations for self harm in 2018/19 - up from 103,936 in 2017/18 and 103,723 the year before that.
Mental health charities are concerned that the pandemic may be exacerbating the problem.
Vicki Nash, head of policy and campaigns at Mind, said: “It’s worrying to see that hospital admissions for self-harm increased between 2017 and 2019. We also know from our own research that self-harm has increased during lockdown.
“Regardless of whether this is because people aren't getting the right support early enough and reaching crisis point, because of an overall rise, or because more people are seeking help, the numbers raise concerns.
“We want to make sure as many people as possible get the support they need long before they reach crisis point. It is also important to take into account the wider social issues such as poor housing, employment issues and financial strain, which can all contribute to poor mental health.
“As we begin to come out of lockdown it is crucial people’s mental health is prioritised. We will closely follow the measures the NHS is taking, making sure resource is spread appropriately, and strive to support people through our own services as best we can.”
