The study aims to identify which suicide prevention practices are effective for young people hospitalized for a suicide attempt. Throughout the course of the project, we will develop and test strategies for implementing effective suicide prevention practices in children’s hospitals.

First, we will seek to collect information on existing practices and determine best practices for suicide prevention. Using a national sample of Medicaid claims and survey data, we will determine which hospital and community structures, such as the physical infrastructure and personnel embedded in the system, are associated with higher and lower rates of patient attendance at mental health follow-up visits among youth hospitalized for suicide.

Next, we will develop a toolkit that hospitals can use to reduce and prevent repeat suicide attempt among hospitalized youth. Along with an extensive literature review and qualitative interviews with hospital staff, we will use the information garnered from the first portion of this study to develop a youth suicide prevention toolkit. We’re designing this resource to help inpatient medical units select and implement processes for safety planning and ensuring continuity of mental health care for youth at risk of suicide.

Finally, we will test the toolkit and evaluate its efficacy in our health system.