Suicidality in Rural Communities: A Scoping Review of Research in Canada

Abstract

A scoping review of research about suicidality in rural and remote Canadian communities, published between 2009 and July 2020 was conducted by searching Embase, Medline, CINAHL, PsychInfo, SocIndex, Geobase, and PsycArticles databases. Included articles were reviewed and charted using data extraction. Thirty-nine Canadian, non-Indigenous articles met inclusion. Most publications were based on quantitative research (23). Apart from one intervention study, articles were prevention focused, with suicidality risk and protective factors noted to be of particular interests. The most frequently referenced suicidality risk factor was rural residence. It is anticipated that results of this review will inform future research, particularly the need to include qualitative and mixed methodologies, protocol, and evaluations of interventions as well as postvention research, with further consideration of different Canadian settings and populations.