The Enhancing Treatment and Utilization for Depression and Emergent Suicidality (ETUDES) Center represents a collaborative effort between investigators at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), the University of Pittsburgh and several other institutions. The Center is focused on augmenting the capacity of pediatric primary care to identify, refer, and manage youth at risk for suicidal behavior, with a particular emphasis on making sure that the tools we develop are effective and acceptable for youth and families of color. 

In the ETUDES Center, we will evaluate interventions to improve screening, treatment engagement, and safety planning in primary care for youth at risk for suicide, and we will test novel methods for detecting suicide risk. We will also study interventions designed to target known risk factors for depression and suicidal behavior, namely poor sleep, low activity and online victimization. 

To further address the youth suicide crisis, the Center aims to train and support a national cohort of diverse early career scientists, facilitate provider training in suicide assessment and prevention, and serve as a national resource for youth suicide prevention research. Across all Center activities, we will work in close partnership with patients, caregivers, providers and health care leaders.