Practice Facilitation to Enhance Implementation of a Pediatric Suicide Prevention Pathway

Summary

Suicide in youth is rapidly growing to where it is the second leading cause of death across the United States. Use of available tools have shown the potential to boost primary care providers' (PCPs) detection of suicide risk and confidence and knowledge around addressing it; however, ways that work to address clinic and provider barriers that influence the ongoing implementation of a pathway to manage at-risk patients remain under researched. The proposed study will assess the impact of the investigators Facilitated Suicide Prevention program--which provides support to assist practices in integrating screening, assessment, data analysis and management procedures into routine care through feedback and coaching--on clinic use of the suicide prevention pathway and youth suicide.

The project hypothesizes that compared to PCPs in Training Only (TO) practices, those in TO+Practice Facilitation (PF) may rate the care pathway as more able to be carried out and acceptable; demonstrate greater use of the pathway components (screening, risk assessment, safety planning, lethal means safety counseling, referrals and follow-up); demonstrate higher levels of use of the pathway suicide prevention skills ; and report higher levels of confidence putting the care pathway into use.

Also we predict that, compared to youth who screen positive for suicide risk and are followed by PCPs in TO practices, those who screen positive and are followed by PCPs in TO+PF practices will be less likely to attempt suicide during the next six months; less likely to have suicidal ideation during the next 6 months; more likely to see a behavioral health provider during the next 6 months; and less likely to be sent to Emergency Departments during the next 6 months .

Conditions

• Suicide Prevention

Interventions

OTHER

Practice Facilitation

Practice facilitation (PF) is a supplemental support to increase competence and and adoption of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) youth suicide prevention. pathway in primary care. Practices will receive 6 months of PF which involves clinic- and provider- level data review and adoption data for the 5 components of the prevention pathway, clinical coaching around implementing the different components , logistical coaching in identifying multilevel contextual barriers to implementation and strategies to overcome them

OTHER

Training in National Institute of Mental Health Youth Suicide Prevention Pathway

Training in the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Youth Suicide Prevention Pathway involves a 2-hour in-person presentation created in consultation with NIMH, Zero Suicide and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. It is delivered by a licensed professional counselor with content expertise to all primary care practice personnel involved in the prevention pathway. The first hour focuses on conducting Ask Suicide Screening Questions (ASQ) screening, identifying risk/protective factors, identifying warning signs and conducting a brief suicide safety assessment. The second hour covers safety planning, lethal means safety, behavioral health referrals and arranging follow-up. Didactic and interactive methods are used, including group discussion, activities, videos and case vignettes

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Colorado, Denver

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Bruno J Anthony, PhD · University of Colorado School of Medicine - Anschutz Medical Campus

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

12 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-01-28

Primary Completion

2027-02-01

Completion

2027-03-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations