Mapping the Evidence Base on Suicide, Self-Harm, Suicidal Behaviour, Postvention Interventions, and Contextual Factors in Ghana: A Rapid Scoping Review for National Policy Design- A Protocol

Abstract Objective: This rapid scoping review aims to map the volume, range, and nature of peer-reviewed and grey literature evidence on suicide, self-harm, suicidal ideation, suicidal behaviour (suicide plans, suicide attempts), and postvention among the general population, persons with chronic medical conditions, vulnerable groups, and bereaved populations in Ghana, in order to inform Ghana’s national Suicide Situational Analysis. Introduction: Suicide, self-harm, suicidal behaviour and postvention remain substantially underexplored public health concerns in Ghana, compounded by historical underreporting tied to the former criminal status of attempted suicide and a critical shortage of trained mental health personnel. Following the 2023 decriminalisation of attempted suicide, no systematic synthesis of the existing, fragmented evidence base has been undertaken to inform the national policy response that this legislative shift now requires. C Inclusion criteria: This review will consider evidence relating to a population comprised of the general population of Ghana, including persons with chronic medical conditions, vulnerable and high-risk groups, and bereaved populations. Concept criteria will include evidence addressing suicidal ideation, suicide plans, suicide attempts, suicide deaths, self-harm, and postvention, including their prevalence, contextual risk and protective factors, methods and means, interventions and care pathways, and bereavement impacts. Context centres on evidence generated within Ghana across all sixteen administrative regions. Sources reporting non-Ghanaian or non-extractable regional data, general mental health outcomes without an extractable suicidal behaviour-related outcome, or published before 2006 will be excluded. Methods: This rapid scoping review will be conducted in accordance with JBI methodology and reported following PRISMA-ScR guidelines. MEDLINE, CINAHL, African Journals OnLine, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar will be searched for literature published between 2006 and 2026, alongside grey literature sources. Following deduplication in Rayyan, title/abstract screening will be conducted by one reviewer with a random 20% sample independently verified by a second reviewer. Full-text screening and data extraction will be conducted in a combined, single-step workflow by one reviewer, with 100% of exclusions audited by a second reviewer. Disagreements will be resolved by consensus or referral to a third reviewer. Data will be charted using a structured, piloted instrument and presented in tabular, graphical, and narrative format aligned to the review’s objectives.