National and CT data and studies show that many individuals who die by suicide had recently been in health or behavioral health care treatment.
Therefore, these providers and settings are key gatekeepers for individuals at risk of suicide. They may advance their existing efforts to increase identification, referral, access to care, care coordination, and follow-up post discharge of individuals at risk through the use of various evidence-based strategies, practices, tools and policies, and by ensuring that clinical and professional staff are trained and educated appropriately.
The following are some examples of recommended resources:
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Screening Tools & Assessment Instruments
- Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) Note: Columbia Suicide Severity Risk Scale – Brief Screener is now available as an App for Androids, iPhones and iPads, thanks to a partnership with a PA group.
- Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Training SCORM FILE for Learning Management Integration
- Know What Questions to Ask Patients and Clients with the C-SSRS-Suicide Risk Screening Tool
Clinical Tools & Frameworks
- Zero Suicide Approach Elements & Joint Commission Element Crosswalk
- Zero Suicide in Health and Behavioral Health Care
- Best Practices in Care Transitions for Individuals with Suicide Risk: Inpatient Care to Outpatient Care
- Closing a Deadly Gap in Behavioral Health Care
- Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality
- Inadequate Hand-Off Communication
- Suicide Care in Systems Framework
- Suicide Prevention Recommendations for Non-Hospital Behavioral Health Care Settings
- Suicide Risk Assessment Toolkit
- Suicide Safety Plan App
- Therapeutic Risk Management of the Suicidal Patient
Training, Education & Staff Support
- Assessing Factors Related To Clinicians’ Attitudes Towards Suicide Prevention
- Coalition of Clinician Survivors
- Counseling Access to Lethal Means
- CT Training and Education Resources
- Healthcare Professionals & Suicide: Awareness, Prevention, First Steps to Help
- Impact of Suicide on Professional Caregivers: A Guide for Managers and Supervisors
- Lethal Means Counseling in the ED
- Safety Planning
- Suicide Prevention: Evidence-Informed Interventions for the Health Care Workforce Guide | AHA
- Trauma Toolbox for Primary Care
- University of Buffalo School of Social Work Self-Care Starter Kit
Special Populations & Issues
- Autism and Suicide
- Barriers and Opportunities for Suicide Prevention Among Correctional Officers: An Issue Brief for Clinicians
- Gambling and Suicide Risk
- Intersection of Opioids and Suicide Webinar
- National Guidelines for Child and Youth Behavioral Health Crisis Care (samhsa.gov)
- Parents to Parents: After Your Child’s Suicide Attempt
- Preventing Suicide in Emergency Department Patients
- Preventing Suicide among Men in the Middle Years
- Safety Planning for Youth Suicide Prevention
- Suicide Risk Management Consultation Program (Offers free, expert consultation for any provider, including outside VA, working with a veteran who may be at risk of suicide)
- TIP 50: Addressing Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors in Substance Abuse Treatment
- Treatment for Suicidal Ideation, Self-harm, and Suicide Attempts Among Youth
Postvention & After-Suicide Response Resources for Healthcare Systems
Additional Guidelines & Research
- ACCESS Mental Health CT
- Bullet Points Project
- Connecticut’s Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Brochure: General Public
- Connecticut’s Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Brochure: Healthcare Professionals
- Self-Directed Violence Classification System Nomenclature
- Suicide in Parking Facilities: Prevention, Response, and Recovery