Preventing Suicidal Behavior With Diverse High-Risk Youth in Acute Care Settings

Johns Hopkins University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Suicide, Attempted; Suicide Prevention; Suicide Ideation; Suicide

Treatments: Behavioral: Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents Ultra Short Crisis Intervention (IPT-A SCI); Behavioral: Stanley Brown Safety Planning Intervention and Follow-up Contacts (SPI+)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06151158

IRB00408733

Details and patient eligibility

About

The study will compare the effectiveness of two relatively brief and scalable evidence-based interventions: the Stanley Brown Safety Planning Intervention and Follow-up Contacts (SPI+), a suicide-specific intervention that helps people prevent suicidal crises from escalating, and Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents Ultra Short Crisis Intervention (IPT-A SCI), a psychotherapeutic crisis intervention treatment for suicidal adolescents that teaches youth skills to prevent suicidal crises and addresses interpersonal problems that lead to suicidal crises. The results will inform the future standard of care for youth at risk for suicide presenting in the ED setting. This project focuses on suicidal youth ages 12-19 in three ethnically and racially diverse urban areas: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; and upper Manhattan/lower Bronx in New York City.

Full description

Emergency department (ED) visits for suicide-related concerns have been increasing in youth over the past decade, a trend potentially exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, youth suicidal thoughts and attempts have increased with the 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) finding that 18.8 percent of high school students have seriously considered suicide and 8.9 percent had attempted suicide in the past year. Furthermore, suicide rates are increasing more rapidly in Latino/Latina, Black, and multiracial youth, especially Black youth as compared to White youth. Similar increases in suicide risk are seen in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other sexually minority (LGBTQ+) youth. This project focuses on suicidal youth ages 12-19 in three ethnically and racially diverse urban areas: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; and upper Manhattan/lower Bronx in New York City.

There is limited evidence about which interventions are most helpful for suicidal youth in acute care settings such as EDs. Interventions like safety planning (Safety Planning Intervention with follow-up contacts) are delivered primarily in ED settings while others like Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents Ultra Short Crisis Intervention (IPT-A SCI) are provided primarily in outpatient settings. Furthermore, safety planning focuses on deescalating suicidal crises when beginning to occur, while IPT-A SCI focuses on developing skills to prevent crises from occurring. While both approaches have an evidence base, it is not yet known which one is more effective and acceptable in a diverse youth population. Determining which intervention is more effective has implications for dissemination and resource allocation to EDs or outpatient settings.

The research team includes a group of ethnically and racially diverse partners and advisors, advocates, researchers, ED physicians, nurses, and social workers, some of whom have lived experience of suicide attempts and suicide loss. This team has provided feedback about crucial elements of this proposal, e.g., recruitment, intervention approaches, and follow-up approaches and will continue active involvement in all stages of this project.

The study will compare the effectiveness of two relatively brief and scalable evidence-based interventions: the SPI+, a suicide-specific intervention that helps people prevent suicidal crises from escalating, and IPT-A SCI, a psychotherapeutic crisis intervention treatment for suicidal adolescents that teaches youth skills to prevent suicidal crises and addresses interpersonal problems that lead to suicidal crises. The results will inform the future standard of care for youth at risk for suicide presenting in the ED setting.

Enrollment: 1,000 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 12 to 19 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Acute care visit for suicide-related concern or screen positive on a suicide risk screener (serious SI as indicated by a C-SSRS screening endorsing question two "Have you actually had any thoughts of killing yourself?" in past four weeks or SA in past four weeks);
• Has a cell phone with ability to receive phone calls and text messages over the 12-month follow-up;
• Ability to speak, understand, and read in English or Spanish

Exclusion criteria

• Significant cognitive or developmental delays that prevent understanding or using SPI or IPT-A SCI. Participants must be verbally fluent and have the ability to communicate verbally. This will, in part, be determined by notes in Epic and/or by asking one of the patient's parents/clinicians;
• Altered mental status that precludes ability to provide informed assent or consent (acute psychosis, intoxication, or mania);
• Unable to provide informed consent (adults); assent (minors); permission (parents/caregivers).

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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1,000 participants in 2 patient groups

Safety Planning Intervention

Active Comparator group

Description:

The SPI is a brief, evidence- based intervention that provides people with an individualized set of steps that can be used progressively to both reduce risk and maintain safety when suicide ideation (SI) emerges. Safety plans are developed collaboratively between providers, at risk youth, and family members when possible. Core SPI components include recognizing warning signs of an imminent suicidal crisis (e.g., changes in mood, thoughts or behaviors); using internal coping skills to reduce distress; using people or places in the individual's support network as a means of distraction from SI; reaching out to family or friends to help manage the crisis; contacting health professionals or emergency services; and reducing access to lethal means. SPI+ includes a brief follow-up component post- discharge that includes contacting the patient for a mood and risk check-in; reviewing and revising the safety plan; and facilitating connection with community mental health services.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Stanley Brown Safety Planning Intervention and Follow-up Contacts (SPI+)

Ultra-Brief Crisis IPT-A

Active Comparator group

Description:

Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents Ultra Short Crisis Intervention (IPT-A SCI) is a scalable, flexible, and extensively examined mental health treatment developed to reduce depressive symptoms and improve interpersonal functioning, and has been adapted for use in adolescents (IPT-A SCI) and shown to be effective in treating depression and reducing associated suicide risk. Interpersonal problems are often at the core of suicidal thinking and behavior in youths including minority youths.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents Ultra Short Crisis Intervention (IPT-A SCI)