Practice Facilitation to Enhance Implementation of a Pediatric Suicide Prevention Pathway

Suicide in youth is rapidly growing to where it is the second leading cause of death across the United States. Use of available tools have shown the potential to boost primary care providers' (PCPs) detection of suicide risk and confidence and knowledge around addressing it; however, ways that work to address clinic and provider barriers that influence the ongoing implementation of a pathway to manage at-risk patients remain under researched. The proposed study will assess the impact of the investigators Facilitated Suicide Prevention program--which provides support to assist practices in integrating screening, assessment, data analysis and management procedures into routine care through feedback and coaching--on clinic use of the suicide prevention pathway and youth suicide.

The project hypothesizes that compared to PCPs in Training Only (TO) practices, those in TO+Practice Facilitation (PF) may rate the care pathway as more able to be carried out and acceptable; demonstrate greater use of the pathway components (screening, risk assessment, safety planning, lethal means safety counseling, referrals and follow-up); demonstrate higher levels of use of the pathway suicide prevention skills ; and report higher levels of confidence putting the care pathway into use.

Also we predict that, compared to youth who screen positive for suicide risk and are followed by PCPs in TO practices, those who screen positive and are followed by PCPs in TO+PF practices will be less likely to attempt suicide during the next six months; less likely to have suicidal ideation during the next 6 months; more likely to see a behavioral health provider during the next 6 months; and less likely to be sent to Emergency Departments during the next 6 months .