Suicide in rural Haiti: Clinical and community perceptions of prevalence, etiology, and prevention

► First study to compare perspectives of suicide in the biomedical and lay community in rural Haiti. ► Healthcare workers underestimated suicide frequency and the veracity of suicide claims. ► Drivers of suicide were social in nature rather than pathological. ► Vodou explanatory models of suicide invoking sent spirits attributed less blame to personal deficits than Christian models. ► Religious and community settings may currently be more relevant than biomedical settings for suicide prevention.