Key Message
The scoping review aims to summarize and evaluate the themes and analytical strategies of studies that have used data linkage methods to examine the healthcare engagement of individuals with self-harming and suicidal tendencies. Data linkage offers a promising approach for researching the dynamics between self-harm, suicide, and healthcare contact. However, most studies primarily focus on the associations between socio-demographic factors and the risks of self-harm and suicide. Future research should emphasize the inclusion of additional variables through new data collection, integrating them with existing datasets, or adopting more innovative approaches to analyzing available data.