Plan and Protect: Safety Planning for Teens in Rural Emergency Departments

Trial statusNot yet recruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age12-17
SponsorDartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

About this trial

The goal of this observational study is to determine whether implementing a culturally sensitive, tablet-based safety planning program called Plan \& Protect (P\&P) within rural emergency departments can improve home safety and reduce suicide risk in adolescents presenting with suicidality.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

* Will implementing P\&P increase caregiver-reported home safety (reduce access to firearms and unsafe medication storage) for adolescents 12-17 years old presenting to rural EDs with suicidal ideation, self-harm, or mental health crisis? * Will implementing P\&P decrease adolescent-reported perceived suicide risk and related outcomes (e.g., suicide events, and attendance at follow-up mental healthcare)?

Researchers will compare outcomes for adolescents and caregivers receiving P\&P (implemented as the new standard of care at sites during the intervention periods) to those receiving usual care (prior to P\&P implementation at those hospitals) to see if P\&P increases home safety and decreases suicide risk and related healthcare utilization.

Participants will, if clinically appropriate:

* Complete the tablet-based P\&P modules during their ED visit * Complete self-report measures at baseline, \~30 days, and \~3 months post-discharge * A subset will also participate in semi-structured interviews

Eligibility criteria

Qualifiers

12-17 years of age (and their parent/caregiver(s))

Ability to speak and complete surveys in English

History of emergency department visit for suicidality, self-harm or mental health crisis

Medically stable

Disqualifiers

Cognitive or developmental delays that preclude program participation based on clinical team assessment

Diagnosis of psychosis

Primary diagnosis of an eating disorder

Parent/guardian not able to provide consent in English

Trial design

Treatments tested in this trial

  • Plan & Protect safety planning intervention
  • Care as usual

Treatment groups

550 Participants
are divided into 2 treatment groups

Sponsors and collaborators

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

Lead sponsor

Trustees of Dartmouth College

Sponsor institution

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)

Collaborator

Trustees of Dartmouth College

Collaborator