Impact of a Suicide-Specific Intervention within Inpatient Psychiatric Care: The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality

Suicide prevention inpatient group treatment-A treatment development and feasibility study

BACKGROUND

One mainstay of psychiatric treatment for suicidal crises is inpatient psychiatric hospitalization. Despite the need to secure immediate safety and stabilization, inpatient treatment for acutely suicidal patients remains diagnosis-specific, which may fail to directly target and adequately manage suicidal behavior as a symptom and reason for admission or treatment. The post-discharge period is a high-risk period for repeat suicide attempts or death by suicide, but overburdened workforce and high patient turnover make it difficult to provide suicide-specific treatment.

METHODS

In response to this need, we developed the Suicide Prevention Inpatient Group Treatment (SPIGT), a four-module, group-based intervention, which provides evidence-supported concrete tools and psychoeducation to directly address suicidality. To assess feasibility and acceptability of implementation, the SPIGT was piloted on an inpatient psychiatric unit starting in 2016. Group participants were given optional, anonymous surveys after each module. Unit clinicians also completed optional, anonymous surveys to assess their attitudes towards the intervention.

RESULTS

Results indicate that participants responded very favorably to each module, and that unit clinicians felt that the implementation of this intervention was feasible and acceptable.

CONCLUSION

The SPIGT shows promise as a scalable suicide-specific, brief intervention, which addresses an unmet and critical need in suicide prevention.

Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Suicide Status Form-IV

The Suicide Status Form-IV (SSF-IV) is the measure used in the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS). The SSF-IV Core Assessment measures various domains of suicide risk. Previous studies established a two-factor solution in small, homogeneous samples; no investigations have assessed measurement invariance. The current investigation sought to replicate previous factor analyses and used measurement invariance to identify differences in the Core Assessment by race and gender. Adults (N = 731) were referred for a CAMS consultation after exhibiting risk for suicide. Confirmatory factor analyses indicated good fit for both one- and two-factor solutions while the two-factor solution is potentially redundant. Configural, metric, and scalar invariance held across race and gender. Ordinal logistic regression models indicated that neither race nor gender significantly moderated the relationship between the Core Assessment total score and clinical outcomes. Findings support a measurement invariant, one-factor solution for the SSF-IV Core Assessment.

Disentangling Rates, Risk, and Drivers of Suicide in the Construction Industry

Background: Research suggests construction industry workers (CIWs) face increased suicide vulnerability. Aims: The current study synthesizes international evidence examining rates, risk, and drivers of CIW suicide. Method: Comprehensive searches of MEDLINE, PsycInfo, Embase, Emcare, Web of Science, Scopus, and gray literature were undertaken, identifying studies that discussed, theorized about, or demonstrated risks and/or rates and/or drivers of CIW suicide, without inclusion of other industries. Results: A number of included studies statistically analyzed suicide outcomes in a variety of CIW populations, with the majority reporting increased rate and/or risk, however significant heterogeneity limited comparisons. Twenty-five potential drivers were identified and classified as personal- or industry-related. Disentanglement highlighted the relevance of previously understood personal drivers, need for future focus on industry drivers, and potential interplay between drivers. Limitations: Exclusion of non-English articles as well as inability to extend analysis to fully understand rates and/or risk of CIW suicide and tenuous links between suggested drivers and suicide outcomes. Conclusion: Despite limitations, this paper aids understanding in relation to the suggestion that CIWs are at increased suicide vulnerability. Disentanglement of potential drivers demonstrates the importance of future research focused on industry drivers to assist in prevention strategies.

Brief and Ultra-Brief Suicide-Specific Interventions

The rising rates of suicide warrant effective treatments that can quickly help stabilize suicidal individuals and prevent future suicidal crises from occurring. Across the past few decades, there has been a rise in the development of ultra-brief (1-4 sessions) and brief suicide-specific interventions (6-12 sessions) to meet this need. This article reviews several prominent ultra-brief and brief interventions, including the Teachable Moment Brief Intervention, Attempted Suicide Short Intervention Program, Safety Planning Intervention, Crisis Response Planning, Cognitive Therapy for Suicide Prevention, Brief Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Suicide Prevention, Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality, and the Coping Long-Term With Active Suicide Program. A brief review of each interventions' evidence base is also provided. Current challenges and directions for future research in testing the efficacy and effectiveness of suicide prevention initiatives are discussed.

The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality compared to enhanced treatment as usual for inpatients who are suicidal: A randomized controlled trial

Background

Although use of inpatient crisis hospital intervention for suicide risk is common, the evidence for inpatient treatments that reduce suicidal thoughts and behaviors is remarkably limited. To address this need, this novel feasibility pilot randomized controlled trial compared the use of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) to enhanced treatment as usual (E-TAU) within a standard acute inpatient mental health care setting.

Objectives

We hypothesized that CAMS would be more effective than E-TAU in reducing suicidal thoughts and behaviors. As secondary outcomes we also investigated depressive symptoms, general symptom burden, reasons for living, and quality of the therapeutic relationship.

Methods

All patients were admitted due to acute suicidal thoughts or behaviors. They were randomly assigned to CAMS (n = 43) or E-TAU (n = 45) and assessed at four time points (admission, discharge, 1 month and 5 months after discharge). We used mixed-effects models, effect sizes, and reliable change analyses to compare improvements across and between treatment groups over time.

Results

Intent-to-treat analyses of 88 participants [mean age 32.1, SD = 13.5; n = 47 (53%) females] showed that both groups improved over time across all outcome measures with no significant between-group differences in terms of change in suicidal ideation, depression, reasons for living, and distress. However, CAMS showed larger effect sizes across all measures; for treatment completers CAMS patients showed significant improvement in suicidal ideation (p = 0.01) in comparison to control patients. CAMS patients rated the therapeutic relationship significantly better (p = 0.02) than E-TAU patients and were less likely to attempt suicide within 4 weeks after discharge (p = 0.05).

Conclusions

CAMS and E-TAU were both effective in reducing suicidal thoughts and symptom distress. Within this feasibility RCT the pattern of results was generally supportive of CAMS suggesting that inpatient use of CAMS is both feasible and promising. However, our preliminary results need further replication within well-powered multi-site randomized controlled trials.

Trial registration

DRKS-ID/ICTRP-ID: DRKS00013727. The trial was retrospectively registered in the German Clinical Trials Register, registration code/ DRKS-ID: DRKS00013727 on 12.01.2018 and also in the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform of the World Health Organization (identical registration code).

Costs, benefits, and cost-benefit of Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality versus enhanced treatment as usual

Suicide rates have been steadily increasing in both the U.S. general population and military, with significant psychological and economic consequences. The purpose of the current study was to examine the economic costs and cost-benefit of the suicide-focused Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) intervention versus enhanced treatment as usual (ETAU) in an active duty military sample using data from a recent randomized controlled trial of CAMS versus ETAU. The full intent-to-treat sample included 148 participants (mean age 26.8 years ± 5.9 SD years, 80% male, 53% White). Using a micro-costing approach, the cost of each condition was calculated at the individual level from a healthcare system perspective. Benefits were estimated at the individual level as cost savings in past-year healthcare expenditures based on direct care reimbursement rates. Cost-benefit was examined in the form of cost-benefit ratios and net benefit. Total costs, benefits, cost-benefit ratios, and net benefit were calculated and analyzed using general linear mixed modeling on multiply imputed datasets. Results indicated that treatment costs did not differ significantly between conditions; however, CAMS was found to produce significantly greater benefit in the form of decreased healthcare expenditures at 6-month follow-up. CAMS also demonstrated significantly greater cost-benefit ratios (i.e., benefit per dollar spent on treatment) and net-benefit (i.e., total benefit less the cost of treatment) at 12-month follow-up. The current study suggests that beyond its clinical effectiveness, CAMS may also convey potential economic advantages over usual care for the treatment of suicidal active duty service members. Our findings demonstrate cost savings in the form of reduced healthcare expenditures, which theoretically represent resources that can be reallocated toward other healthcare system needs, and thus lend support toward the overall value of CAMS.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) Versus Treatment as Usual (TAU) for Suicidal College Students

This randomized controlled trial compared the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) and Treatment as Usual (TAU) for suicidal college students within a feasibility trial. Sixty-two suicidal college students were randomized to CAMS (n = 33) or TAU (n = 29). We hypothesized that those receiving CAMS would show more improvement in suicide-related measures, and effects would be moderated by borderline personality disorder (BPD), prior suicide attempts, and age. Both treatment groups showed improvements in all outcome variables; CAMS had a significantly higher impact on depression and suicidal ideation when measured weekly during care and was more likely than TAU to decrease hopelessness among students with fewer BPD features, no suicide attempt history, and older age. Conversely, TAU did better for students with BPD features and history of multiple suicide attempts.

The effectiveness of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) compared to alternative treatment conditions: A meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

This meta-analysis aimed to test the efficacy of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) intervention against other commonly used interventions for the treatment of suicide ideation and other suicide-related variables.

METHOD

Database, expert, and root and branch searches identified nine empirical studies that directly compared CAMS to other active interventions. A random effects model was used to calculate the effect size differences between the interventions; additionally, moderators of the effect sizes were tested for suicidal ideation.

RESULTS

In comparison to alternative interventions, CAMS resulted in significantly lower suicidal ideation (d = 0.25) and general distress (d = 0.29), significantly higher treatment acceptability (d = 0.42), and significantly higher hope/lower hopelessness (d = 0.88). No significant differences for suicide attempts, self-harm, other suicide-related correlates, or cost effectiveness were observed. The effect size differences for suicidal ideation were consistent across study types and quality, timing of outcome measurement, and the age and ethnicity of participants; however, the effect sizes favoring CAMS were significantly smaller with active duty military/veteran samples and with male participants.

CONCLUSIONS

The existing research supports CAMS as a Well Supported intervention for suicidal ideation per Center of Disease Control and Prevention criteria. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

Suicide Screening and Risk Assessment in the Emergency Department: Case Review of a Suicide Attempt Survivor

One in 10 of those who die by suicide are seen in an emergency department within the 2 months before their death. Despite national guidelines and resources (including from the Joint Commission and Emergency Nurses Association) for suicide screening, risk assessment, and follow-up care, suicidal ideation and behavior continue to go undetected in emergency departments, leading to gaps in care. This case review was conducted as part of a larger electronic medical record review of emergency department practices and aims to highlight potential gaps in care and identify missed opportunities for suicide screening and risk assessment. In addition to highlighting these missed opportunities, this case review provides recommendations for suicide screening and risk assessment resources with options for evidence-based follow-up care for suicidal patients.

Disentangling acculturation and enculturation intergenerational gaps: Examining mother-youth value discrepancies and mental health among Mexican-descent college students

OBJECTIVE

To test the acculturation gap hypothesis by examining mother-youth value discrepancies (both acculturative and enculturative) and their association with mother-youth acculturative conflict and youth mental health outcomes.

METHOD

Participants were 273 Mexican descent college students attending a large, public, Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in West Texas (72% women). The participants' ages ranged 18-25 years (M = 19.33 years; SD = 1.54 years).

RESULTS

Three models assessed the relationship between mother-youth value discrepancies and mental health outcomes (suicidal ideation, non-suicidal self-injury, and depressive symptoms) as mediated by mother-youth acculturative conflict. Consistently, Mexican heritage cultural values were related to mental health outcomes while American cultural values were not.

CONCLUSIONS

The study found that increased mother-youth discrepancies on Mexican cultural values were associated with increased negative mental health outcomes. Our findings suggest that adopting or learning new mainstream American values does not substitute for the Mexican cultural values that protect against negative outcomes.

[Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality: An Effective Brief Intervention for the Treatment of Suicidal Patients]

Das "Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality" (CAMS) ist einer von mehreren Interventionsansätzen zur Behandlung von suizidalen Patienten und Patientinnen und wurde weltweit seit 3 Jahrzehnten untersucht und weiterentwickelt. Das CAMS ist auf die Etablierung einer tragenden therapeutischen Beziehung auf Augenhöhe zu einer suizidalen Person ausgerichtet. Der Patient wird aktiv an der Einschätzung seines Suizidrisikos beteiligt und zum "Mitverfasser" seines eigenen suizidspezifischen Behandlungsplans. Das konkrete therapeutische Vorgehen wird durch ein vielseitig anwendbares Instrument, die sogenannte Suizidstatusform (SSF), strukturiert und geleitet. Das CAMS kann von verschiedenen therapeutischen Berufsgruppen sowie bei Patienten und Patientinnen mit unterschiedlichen Diagnosen angewandt werden. Die Wirksamkeit im Hinblick auf eine Verringerung von Suizidgedanken, der allgemeinen psychischen Belastung und Depressivität sowie auf eine Zunahme von Hoffnung und Zuversicht ist mittlerweile empirisch gut belegt.The "Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality" (CAMS) is an intervention approach for the treatment of suicidal patients that has been studied and developed for three decades around the world. CAMS is focused on establishing a continuing therapeutic relationship at eye level with a suicidal person. The patient is actively involved in assessing his or her suicide risk and becomes the "co-author" of his or her own suicide-specific treatment plan. The specific therapeutic procedure is structured and guided by a versatile instrument called the Suicide Status Form (SSF). CAMS can be applied by different therapeutic professional groups to patients with different diagnoses. Its effectiveness in reducing suicidal ideation, general psychological distress and depressiveness, and increasing hope and confidence is now empirically well established.

Clinicians' Experience of Collaboration in the Treatment of Suicidal Clients Within the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality Framework

INTRODUCTION

There is little known about the clinicians' experience of collaboration using the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicide (CAMS) framework. This study aimed to give voice to the clinician experience.

METHOD

A qualitative design utilised semi-structured interviews with ten psychologists who worked in a Suicide Assessment and Treatment Service (SATS) in Ireland which utilises the CAMS framework.

RESULTS

An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach revealed several important findings. The superordinate themes included 'Finding Safety', 'Regulation of the Self', 'Connecting', and 'Systemic Challenges'.

DISCUSSION

The CAMS framework plays an important role in providing a safe base for the clinician (in terms of understanding suicidality, in addition to the structures of the framework). It provides a mechanism in which to process difficult emotions, and a way of communicating a formulation of suicide to the treating team. Importantly, the CAMS emerged as facilitating a collaborative, therapeutic way of working.

Development of a Clinical Pathway for the Assessment and Management of Suicidality on a Pediatric Psychiatric Inpatient Unit

Purpose

This article describes steps taken by a mental health inpatient multidisciplinary team to develop a clinical pathway for the assessment and management of suicidality in a pediatric psychiatric inpatient unit.

Patients and Methods

The setting for this project is a 19-bed inpatient psychiatry unit providing care for children and adolescents (6-17 years of age) in a tertiary care pediatric hospital in Ontario, Canada. Three Lean methodologies were used: 1) The A3 process was used to articulate a problem statement and help clarify expectations, determine goals, and uncover, address and encourage discussion of potential issues; 2) Process mapping was used to show how work process activities are sequenced from the time of the patient's admission to discharge; and 3) Standard work, where consideration was given to the breakdown of the work into categories which are sequenced, organized and repeatedly followed. Generally accepted methodologies for developing clinical pathways were used to create a framework and algorithm for the assessment and management of suicidality in psychiatrically hospitalized children and adolescents.

Results

The clinical pathway development resulted in six steps from admission to discharge: intake process, inclusion/exclusion criteria, data integration and treatment formulation, interventions, determination of readiness for discharge, and the discharge process.

Conclusion

This framework, developed with the aim to standardize care for psychiatrically admitted suicidal children and adolescents, may serve as a flexible template for use in similar settings and could be adapted according to local realities and resources.

Effects of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) Model: A Secondary Analysis of Moderation and Influencing Factors

In a randomized controlled trial, we found that suicidal patients who received Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) reported greater improvements in suicidal ideation and mental health distress compared to participants who received treatment as usual (TAU). Here, we explored moderators and mediators of the effectiveness of CAMS. Compared to TAU, CAMS was more effective in reducing suicidal ideation when the working alliance, in particular its bond subcomponent, was low. In terms of reducing mental health distress, CAMS was superior to TAU only for participants who did not use illicit drugs and, more tentatively, only for patients without borderline personality traits. We suggest that CAMS may repair a difficult vantage point in terms of poor working alliance in patients with suicide ideation. To obtain superior benefits of CAMS upon more general mental health distress in patients with drug abuse or borderline traits, these problems may need to be more explicitly targeted in parallel.

Alcohol use predicts emergency psychiatric unit admission for non-fatal suicidal behaviour in the Western Cape (South Africa): a case-control study

Objective: We aimed to describe patterns of substance use among patients admitted to an emergency psychiatric unit for non-fatal suicidal behaviour (NFSB) or another psychiatric reason and establish whether there were significant differences in patterns of substance use between the two groups.Methods: We employed a case-control design (N = 50) and collected data about participants' substance use in Cape Town, South Africa. Data were analysed using Chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests, factor analysis, and logistic regressions.Results: Prevalence of lifetime Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) was 60% in the NFSB group and 28% in the control group. 12% of the NFSB group and 20% of the control group had a lifetime Tobacco Use Disorder. Prevalence of lifetime illicit Substance Use Disorder was 44% in the NFSB group and 60% in the control group. Hospital admission for NFSB was associated with: any past 24-hour alcohol use; quantity of past 24-hour alcohol use; quantity of past-month alcohol use; lifetime AUD; past 12-month AUD; and current AUD; and was not associated with the use of any other substances (p<.05). Past 12-month AUD was the best predictor of hospital admission for NFSB, controlling for, respectively, any past 24-hour alcohol use (aOR = 13.33, p = .023) and quantity of past 24-hour alcohol use (aOR = 9.01, p = .022)Conclusions: Patients admitted to emergency psychiatric units for NFSB have increased needs for the treatment of AUDs compared to patients admitted for another psychiatric emergency. Findings support calls for interventions to prevent NFSB among psychiatric patients with a history of AUD.Key pointsRates of substance use among patients admitted to emergency psychiatric units in South Africa were high compared to the general population.Hazardous alcohol use was uniquely associated with hospital admission for non-fatal suicidal behaviour compared to another psychiatric emergency.Tobacco use and illicit substance use were not associated with hospital admission for non-fatal suicidal behaviour compared to another psychiatric emergency.The association between hazardous alcohol use and hospital admission for non-fatal suicidal behaviour did not appear to be affected by demographic variables.Patients admitted to hospital for non-fatal suicidal behaviour have increased needs for the treatment of alcohol use disorders compared to other psychiatric patients.

Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) compared to enhanced treatment as usual (E-TAU) for suicidal patients in an inpatient setting: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) is a therapeutic framework that has been shown to reduce suicidal ideation and overall symptom distress. CAMS has not been previously evaluated in a standard acute inpatient mental health care setting with only short treatment times for suicidal patients. In this randomized controlled trial (RCT) we are investigating whether CAMS is more effective than Enhanced-Treatment as Usual (E-TAU) in reducing suicidal thoughts as primary outcome variable. We are also investigating depressive symptoms, general symptom relief, and the quality of the therapeutic alliance as secondary outcomes.

METHODS/DESIGN

This RCT is designed as a single-center, two-armed, parallel group observer-blinded clinical effectiveness investigation. We are recruiting and randomizing 60 participants with different diagnoses, who are admitted as inpatients because of acute suicidal thoughts or behaviors into the Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ev. Hospital Bethel in Bielefeld, Germany. The duration of treatment will vary depending on patients' needs and clinical assessments ranging between 10 and 40 days. Patients are assessed four times, at admission, discharge, 1 month, and 5 months post-discharge. The primary outcome measure is the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation. Other outcome measures are administered as assessment timepoints including severity of psychiatric symptoms, depression, reasons for living, and therapeutic relationship.

DISCUSSION

This effectiveness study is being conducted on an acute ward in a psychiatric clinic where patients have multiple problems and diagnoses. Treatment is somewhat limited, and therapists have a large caseloads. The results of this study can thus be generalizable to a typical inpatient psychiatric hospital settings.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

This clinical trial has been retrospectively registered with the German Clinical Trials Register; registration code/ DRKS-ID: DRKS00013727 (on January 12, 2018). In addition, the study was also registered with the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform of the World Health Organization (identical registration code). Registry Name: "Evaluation von CAMS versus TAU bei suizidalen Patienten - Ein stationärer RCT".

A Preliminary Precision Treatment Rule for Remission of Suicide Ideation

OBJECTIVE

There is growing interest in the development of composite precision treatment rules (PTRs) to guide the selection of the treatments most likely to be helpful for individual patients. We present here the results of an effort to develop a preliminary PTR for Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) relative to enhanced-care as usual based on secondary analysis of the Operation Worth Living (OWL) randomized controlled trial. The outcome of interest is eliminating suicide ideation (SI) within 3 months of initiating treatment.

METHOD

A state-of-the-art ensemble machine learning method was used to develop the PTR among the n = 148 U.S. Soldiers (predominately male and White, age range 18-48) OWL patients.

RESULTS

We estimated that CAMS was the better treatment for 77.8% of patients and that treatment assignment according to the PTR would result in a 13.6% (95% CI: 0.9%-26.3%) increase in 3-month SI remission compared to random treatment assignment.

CONCLUSIONS

Although promising, results are limited by the small sample size, restrictive baseline assessment, and inability to evaluate effects on suicidal behaviors or disaggregate based on history of suicidal behaviors. Replication is needed in larger samples with comprehensive baseline assessments, longer-term follow-ups, and more extensive outcomes.

Lifetime and prospective associations among personality trait domains and suicide-related behaviors in patients with severe mental illness

BACKGROUND

Despite extensive research and clinical efforts, the suicide rate in the United States continues to rise, driving the need for more research to identify latent factors that increase risk for suicide and to guide treatment decision-making.

METHODS

The current study examined a large cohort (N = 1,219) of high-risk psychiatric inpatients to explore associations between personality traits and suicide-related variables measured retrospectively (lifetime history prior to hospital admission) and prospectively (at discharge and 12-month follow-up).

RESULTS

Lifetime suicide-related behavior (SRB: combination of ideational severity, aborted, interrupted, actual attempts, and non-suicidal self-injury) was associated with age (younger), gender (female), and elevated scores on the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) negative affectivity, borderline trait composite score, and five-factor model traits of conscientiousness and neuroticism. Patients who manifested persistent suicidal ideation throughout a 6-8 week inpatient treatment (n = 162; 16.9%) tended to be younger, female, and to have elevated PID-5 borderline trait composite scores. Twelve-month post-discharge SRB was predicted by elevated PID-5 borderline trait composite scores.

LIMITATIONS

Personality traits accounted for a small amount of variance in the overall model, thus limiting prediction based on individual traits.

CONCLUSIONS

This large sample of high-risk inpatients with longitudinal outcomes provides a rare assessment of proximal personality traits in predicting lifetime SRB, persistent suicidal ideation observed during the course of a 6-8-week intensive inpatient treatment, and SRB outcomes within 12 months after discharge from hospitalization. Personality traits should be included in future attempts to create predictive algorithms that include relevant biological data (neuroimaging, genetic, microbiome).

A novel engagement of suicidality in the emergency department: Virtual Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality

OBJECTIVE

A novel avatar system (Virtual Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality System; V-CAMS) for suicidal patients and medical personnel in emergency departments (EDs) was developed and evaluated. V-CAMS facilitates the delivery of CAMS and other evidence-based interventions to reduce unnecessary hospitalization, readmissions, and suicide following an ED visit.

METHOD

Using iterative user-centered design with 24 suicidal patients, an avatar prototype, "Dr. Dave" (based on Dr. Jobes) was created, along with other patient-facing tools; provider-facing tools, including a clinical decision support tool were also designed and tested to aid discharge disposition.

RESULTS

Feasibility tests supported proof of concept. Suicidal patients affirmed the system's overall merit, positive Perception of Care, and acceptability; medical providers (n = 21) viewed the system as an efficient, effective, and safe method of improving care for suicidal ED patients and reducing unnecessary hospitalization.

CONCLUSIONS

Technology tools including a patient-facing avatar and e-caring contacts, along with provider-facing tools may offer a powerful method of facilitating best-practice suicide prevention interventions and point-of-care tools for suicidal patients seeking ED services and their medical providers. Future directions include full development of V-CAMS and integration into a health electronic medical record and a rigorous randomized controlled trial to study its effectiveness.

Patient safety in inpatient mental health settings: a systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Patients in inpatient mental health settings face similar risks (eg, medication errors) to those in other areas of healthcare. In addition, some unsafe behaviours associated with serious mental health problems (eg, self-harm), and the measures taken to address these (eg, restraint), may result in further risks to patient safety. The objective of this review is to identify and synthesise the literature on patient safety within inpatient mental health settings using robust systematic methodology.

DESIGN

Systematic review and meta-synthesis. Embase, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Health Management Information Consortium, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Web of Science were systematically searched from 1999 to 2019. Search terms were related to 'mental health', 'patient safety', 'inpatient setting' and 'research'. Study quality was assessed using the Hawker checklist. Data were extracted and grouped based on study focus and outcome. Safety incidents were meta-analysed where possible using a random-effects model.

RESULTS

Of the 57 637 article titles and abstracts, 364 met inclusion criteria. Included publications came from 31 countries and included data from over 150 000 participants. Study quality varied and statistical heterogeneity was high. Ten research categories were identified: interpersonal violence, coercive interventions, safety culture, harm to self, safety of the physical environment, medication safety, unauthorised leave, clinical decision making, falls and infection prevention and control.

CONCLUSIONS

Patient safety in inpatient mental health settings is under-researched in comparison to other non-mental health inpatient settings. Findings demonstrate that inpatient mental health settings pose unique challenges for patient safety, which require investment in research, policy development, and translation into clinical practice.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42016034057.

A systematic review of efficacy of Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) in managing suicide risk and deliberate self-harm in adult populations

OBJECTIVE

Evaluate the efficacy of Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) in managing suicide risk and deliberate self-harm in adults.

METHODS

Ten databases were searched for publications referring to CAMS or the Suicide Status Form. Results were evaluated by two reviewers.

RESULTS

Limited evidence that CAMS is effective in reducing suicide risk and deliberate self-harm in adult populations.

CONCLUSIONS

Although CAMS appears to show promise in managing suicidal patients across a range of measures, further evidence is needed to clarify its efficacy in managing suicide risk and deliberate self-harm.

Community-based aftercare following an emergency department presentation for attempted suicide or high risk for suicide: study protocol for a non-randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Suicide is a major public health issue worldwide. Those who have made a recent suicide attempt are at high risk for dying by suicide in the future, particularly during the period immediately following departure from a hospital emergency department. As such the transition from hospital-based care to the community is an important area of focus in the attempt to reduce suicide rates. There is a need for evaluation studies to test the effectiveness of interventions directed to this stage (termed 'aftercare' interventions).

METHODS

A controlled non-randomised two group (intervention vs treatment-as-usual control) design, using an intention-to-treat model, will evaluate the effectiveness of a suicide prevention aftercare intervention providing follow-up after presentations to a hospital emergency department as a result of a suicide attempt or high risk for suicide. The intervention is a community-based service, utilising two meetings with a mental health clinician and follow-up contacts by peer workers via a combination of face-to-face and telephone for four weeks, with the option of extension to 12 weeks. Seventy-five participants of the intervention service will be recruited to the study and compared to 1265 treatment-as-usual controls. The primary hypotheses are that over 12 months, those who participate in the aftercare follow-up intervention are less likely than controls to present to a hospital emergency department for a repeat suicide attempt or because of high risk for suicide, will have fewer re-presentations during this period and will have lower all-cause mortality. As a secondary aim, the impact of the intervention on suicide risk factors for those who participate in the service will be evaluated using pre- and post-intervention repeated measures of depression, anxiety, stress, hopelessness, belongingness, burdensomeness, and psychological distress. Enrolments into the study commenced on 1 November 2017 and are anticipated to cease in November 2019.

DISCUSSION

The study aims to contribute to the understanding of effective interventions for individuals who have presented to a hospital emergency department as a result of a suicide attempt or at high risk for suicide and provide evidence in relation to interventions that incorporate peer-workers.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ACTRN12618001701213 . Registered on 16 October 2018. Retrospectively registered.

Suicide Prevention Strategies for General Hospital and Psychiatric Inpatients: A Narrative Review

BACKGROUND

In-patient (IP) suicides contribute a small but significant proportion of overall suicides. Despite this, suicide prevention strategies focusing on the general hospital IP population remain relatively underresearched. This paper is intended to provide an overview of various proposed suicide prevention approaches in the general hospital, including psychiatric IP, settings, and their evidence base.

METHODOLOGY

Electronic searches of MEDLINE through PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases were performed to identify potentially relevant articles from inception till January 2019. The generated abstracts were systematically screened for their eligibility to be included in the review. Included articles were grouped under five broad themes: environmental modification, staff education, pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, and brain stimulation. Data extraction was done using a structured proforma.

RESULTS

Environmental modifications and educating the health care professionals appear to be the most promising strategies to reduce suicide-related mortality among IPs. Among pharmacological methods, ketamine has shown initial promise in reducing suicidal ideations. Follow-up data are lacking for most of the described methods. Limited but positive evidence exists for cognitive therapies focusing on the immediate postadmission period and brain stimulation techniques, and it warrants further replication.

CONCLUSION

There is a striking paucity of original research on IP suicide prevention. Given the ethical and methodological issues in carrying out studies with IP suicide as the primary outcome, there is a need to focus on intermediate suicide outcome measures, such as knowledge, attitude, and skills among staff handlers of suicidal patients.

Associations of Suicide Prevention Trainings with Practices and Confidence among Clinicians at Community Mental Health Centers

OBJECTIVE

This study examined whether (1) behavioral health providers were more likely to implement best practices when they were more confident in their abilities, (2) number of suicide prevention trainings was positively associated with perceived confidence in abilities and implementation of evidence-based practices, and (3) specific trainings were more impactful than others on increasing providers' level of confidence and/or practices.

METHOD

Providers (N = 137) at three rural community behavioral health centers who had opportunities to attend multiple suicide prevention trainings completed the Zero Suicide Workforce Survey, a measure to evaluate staff knowledge, practices, and confidence in caring for patients at risk of suicide.

RESULTS

There was a moderate association between provider's practice and confidence. The number of attended trainings had a significant correlation with both practice and confidence. Particular trainings demonstrated differential effects on provider's practice and confidence.

CONCLUSION

These results suggest that behavioral health providers who are confident in their skills in assessing and treating suicide risk are more likely incorporate best practices into their clinical work. Also, it appears there is a small but significant benefit to multiple trainings for increasing both practice and confidence among providers.

Mental health care providers' suggestions for suicide prevention among people with substance use disorders in South Africa: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

People with substance use disorders (PWSUDs) are a clearly delineated group at high risk for suicidal behaviour. Expert consensus is that suicide prevention strategies should be culturally sensitive and specific to particular populations and socio-cultural and economic contexts. The aim of this study was to explore mental health care providers' context- and population-specific suggestions for suicide prevention when providing services for PWSUDs in the Western Cape, South Africa.

METHODS

Qualitative data were collected via in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 18 mental health care providers providing services to PWSUDs in the public and private health care sectors of the Western Cape, South Africa. Data were analysed inductively using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Participants highlighted the importance of providing effective mental health care, transforming the mental health care system, community interventions, and early intervention, in order to prevent suicide amongst PWSUDs. Many of their suggestions reflected basic principles of effective mental health care provision. However, participants also suggested further training in suicide prevention for mental health care providers, optimising the use of existing health care resources, expanding service provision for suicidal PWSUDs, improving policies and regulations for the treatment of substance use disorders, provision of integrated health care, and focusing on early intervention to prevent suicide.

CONCLUSIONS

Training mental health care providers in suicide prevention must be augmented by addressing systemic problems in the provision of mental health care and contextual problems that make suicide prevention challenging. Many of the suggestions offered by these participants depart from individualist, biomedical approaches to suicide prevention to include a more contextual view of suicide prevention. A re-thinking of traditional bio-medical approaches to suicide prevention may be warranted in order to reduce suicide among PWSUDs.

The psychometric properties of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality rating scale

OBJECTIVE

The CAMS Rating Scale (CRS) is an adherence measure for the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS), a suicide-specific clinical intervention. This study examined the ability of the CRS to assess adherence to CAMS.

METHODS

Video-recorded therapy sessions of clinicians delivering either CAMS or Enhanced Care-As-Usual (E-CAU) were rated with the CRS. These ratings (N = 98) were used to evaluate criterion validity, internal consistency, and factor structure.

RESULTS

Criterion validity and factor analyses did not support the organization of the CRS into its current subscales. Furthermore, the identified factor model and item-level statistics revealed weak CRS items. Finally, internal consistency was higher among CAMS clinicians than among clinicians delivering E-CAU.

CONCLUSION

These results establish the CRS as a measure that can effectively assess the adherence to CAMS in its current form. Potential revisions to future iterations of the CRS are discussed.

Contributions of Cognitions, Psychological Flexibility, and Therapeutic Alliance to Suicidal Ideation in Psychiatric Inpatients

Although suicide treatment is an expanding area of research, there is relatively less in the literature with respect to how specific vulnerabilities to suicide are addressed by treatment. Utilizing measures of suicide cognitions, therapeutic alliance, and psychological flexibility, we compared their relative contributions to suicidal ideation during and posttreatment among a group of adult psychiatric inpatients (N = 434). Results revealed that cognitions contributed considerably more unique variance to suicidal ideation than alliance and flexibility at discharge and at 2 weeks postdischarge, and to change in suicidal ideation over the course of treatment. Psychological flexibility explained a small amount of variance at the 6-month time point. Factor level analyses also were conducted, with the unsolvability factor within suicide cognitions accounting for the largest portion of variance at both discharge and 2 weeks postdischarge. Study limitations, implications, and future directions are discussed.

The Zero Suicide Model: Applying Evidence-Based Suicide Prevention Practices to Clinical Care

Suicide is reaching epidemic proportions, with over 44,000 deaths by suicide in the US, and 800,000 worldwide in 2015. This, despite research and development of evidence-based interventions that target suicidal behavior directly. Suicide prevention efforts need a comprehensive approach, and research must lead to effective implementation across public and mental health systems. A 10-year systematic review of evidence-based findings in suicide prevention summarized the areas necessary for translating research into practice. These include risk assessment, means restriction, evidence-based treatments, population screening combined with chain of care, monitoring, and follow-up. In this article, we review how suicide prevention research informs implementation in clinical settings where those most at risk present for care. Evidence-based and best practices address the fluctuating nature of suicide risk, which requires ongoing risk assessment, direct intervention and monitoring. In the US, the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention has put forth the Zero Suicide (ZS) Model, a framework to coordinate a multilevel approach to implementing evidence-based practices. We present the Assess, Intervene and Monitor for Suicide Prevention model (AIM-SP) as a guide for implementation of ZS evidence-based and best practices in clinical settings. Ten basic steps for clinical management model will be described and illustrated through case vignette. These steps are designed to be easily incorporated into standard clinical practice to enhance suicide risk assessment, brief interventions to increase safety and teach coping strategies and to improve ongoing contact and monitoring of high-risk individuals during transitions in care and high risk periods.

A Social-Ecological Framework of Theory, Assessment, and Prevention of Suicide

The juxtaposition of increasing suicide rates with continued calls for suicide prevention efforts begs for new approaches. Grounded in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) framework for tackling health issues, this personal views work integrates relevant suicide risk/protective factor, assessment, and intervention/prevention literatures. Based on these components of suicide risk, we articulate a Social-Ecological Suicide Prevention Model (SESPM) which provides an integration of general and population-specific risk and protective factors. We also use this multi-level perspective to provide a structured approach to understanding current theories and intervention/prevention efforts concerning suicide. Following similar multi-level prevention efforts in interpersonal violence and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) domains, we offer recommendations for social-ecologically informed suicide prevention theory, training, research, assessment, and intervention programming. Although the SESPM calls for further empirical testing, it provides a suitable backdrop for tailoring of current prevention and intervention programs to population-specific needs. Moreover, the multi-level model shows promise to move suicide risk assessment forward (e.g., development of multi-level suicide risk algorithms or structured professional judgments instruments) to overcome current limitations in the field. Finally, we articulate a set of characteristics of social-ecologically based suicide prevention programs. These include the need to address risk and protective factors with the strongest degree of empirical support at each multi-level layer, incorporate a comprehensive program evaluation strategy, and use a variety of prevention techniques across levels of prevention.

In-patient suicide: selection of people at risk, failure of protection and the possibility of causation

BACKGROUND

Being a current psychiatric in-patient is one of the strongest statistical risk factors for suicide. It is usually assumed that this strong association is not causal but is a result of the combination of the selection of high-risk patients for admission and the imperfect protection from suicide afforded by psychiatric wards. Logically, a third factor, which is causal, might play a role in the association. It has recently been suggested that adverse experiences in psychiatric units such as trauma, stigma and loss of social role might precipitate some in-patient suicides.

AIMS

To consider whether there is a causal association between psychiatric hospitalisation and suicide.

METHOD

We used the framework of Austin Bradford Hill's criteria for assessing causality in epidemiology to consider the possibility that psychiatric hospitalisation might causally contribute to the extent and variation in in-patient suicide rates.

RESULTS

The association between psychiatric hospitalisation and suicide clearly meets five of the nine Hill's criteria (strength of association, consistency, plausibility, coherence and analogy) and partially meets three of the remaining four criteria (gradient of exposure, temporality and experimental evidence).

CONCLUSIONS

Admission to hospital itself might play a causal role in a proportion of in-patient suicides. The safety of being in hospital with respect to suicide could be examined with a large-scale randomised controlled trial (RCT). In the absence of an RCT, the possibility of a causal role provides further impetus to calls to make care in the community more available and psychiatric hospitals more acceptable to patients.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

M.M.L. and C.J.R. have provided expert testimony in legal proceedings following in-patient suicide.

COPYRIGHT AND USAGE

© The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2017. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license.

MYPLAN -mobile phone application to manage crisis of persons at risk of suicide: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Persons with a past episode of self-harm or severe suicidal ideation are at elevated risk of self-harm as well as dying by suicide. It is well established that suicidal ideation fluctuates over time. Previous studies have shown that a personal safety plan can assist in providing support, when a person experiences suicide ideation, and help seeking professional assistance if needed. The aim of the trial is to determine whether a newly developed safety mobile app is more effective in reducing suicide ideation and other symptoms, compared to a safety plan on paper.

METHODS/DESIGN

The trial is designed as a two-arm, observer-blinded, parallel-group randomized clinical superiority trial, where participants will either receive: (1) Experimental intervention: the safety plan provided as the app MyPlan, or (2) Treatment as Usual: the safety plan in the original paper format. Based on a power calculation, a total of 546 participants, 273 in each arm will be included. They will be recruited from Danish Suicide Prevention Clinics. Both groups will receive standard psychosocial therapeutic care, up to 8-10 sessions of supportive psychotherapy. Primary outcome will be reduction in suicide ideation after 12 months. Follow-up interviews will be conducted at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after date of inclusion.

DISCUSSION

A safety plan is a mandatory part of the treatment in the Suicide Prevention Clinics in Demark. There are no studies investigating the effectiveness of a safety plan app compared to a safety plan on paper on reducing suicide ideation in patients with suicide ideation and suicidal behavior. The trial will gain new knowledge of whether modern technology can augment the effects of traditional personalized safety planning.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02877316 . Registered on 19 August 2016.

Recognizing and addressing unique vulnerabilities of suicidal patients: Suicide research at The Menninger Clinic

Suicide risk is an inescapable presence in the treatment of people with psychiatric disorders, a fact that applies especially in inpatient psychiatric settings. This article summarizes a several-year research initiative at The Menninger Clinic aimed at better understanding psychological contributors to suicidality and developing more effective clinical interventions. Two areas of research are described, an outcomes arm focused on assessing the feasibility and effectiveness of a suicide-specific intervention (The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality) and an exploratory arm whose objective is to learn about psychological vulnerabilities that distinguish suicidal from nonsuicidal patients, with an eye toward developing interventions that address such vulnerabilities. The author concludes that, combined with other developments in the field, this body of work strongly supports the view that suicidal patients should be treated with interventions that specifically target vulnerabilities that seem to set the stage for suicidal episodes.

Treating Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors Within an Emotional Disorders Framework: Acceptability and Feasibility of the Unified Protocol in an Inpatient Setting

We provide a theoretical rationale for applying a transdiagnostic, shared mechanism treatment (the Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders [UP]) to suicidal thoughts and behaviors. We also present results from a proof of concept study examining the feasibility and acceptability of adding a modified UP to treatment as usual (TAU) in an inpatient setting for individuals reporting a recent suicide attempt or active suicidal ideation. Participants ( N = 12) were randomly assigned to receive UP + TAU or TAU alone. Findings indicate good feasibility and acceptability of the adjunctive intervention. Among participants who were responsive to contact attempts postdischarge ( n = 6), there were no observable differences in suicidal thoughts or behaviors during a 6-month follow-up. This application represents a promising initial extension of a cognitive-behavioral, emotion-focused treatment to suicidal individuals within an inpatient setting. Future studies adequately powered to speak to efficacy of the modified UP intervention are warranted.

A controlled comparison trial of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) in an inpatient setting: Outcomes at discharge and six-month follow-up

This controlled comparison trial evaluated a suicide-specific intervention, the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS), in an extended-stay psychiatric inpatient setting. Multiple outcomes were examined for 104 patients, half of whom received individual therapy from therapists trained in CAMS. The comparison group was selected from a larger pool through Propensity Score Matching to ensure comparability on age, sex, treatment program, number of prior suicide attempts, and severity of suicidal ideation. Results showed that a) all patients improved significantly across a wide range of measures, including depression, suicidal ideation, functional disability, and well-being; b) these gains were durable over a 6-month post-discharge period; and c) patients treated by a CAMS-trained individual therapist improved significantly more from admission to discharge across all measures. Differences between CAMS and non-CAMS patients were no longer statistically significant at 6-month follow-up, although statistical power was compromised due to attrition. Although replication studies are needed, these findings suggest that interventions specifically tailored for suicidal patients may have advantages compared to usual, intensive inpatient treatment, perhaps by addressing psychological vulnerabilities specific to the population. The lack of significant differences at follow-up suggest that post-treatment contact may be needed to maintain advantages associated with this and similar interventions.

Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) compared to treatment as usual (TAU) for suicidal patients: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background

Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) is a therapeutic framework that appears promising to reduce suicidal ideation and suicidal cognition. CAMS has not previously been evaluated in a standard specialized mental health care setting for patients with suicidal problems in general. In this pragmatic randomized controlled trial (RCT) we will investigate if CAMS is more effective than treatment as usual (TAU) in reducing suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Effects will also be investigated on mental health and symptom relief in general and upon readmissions to inpatient units.

Methods/design

The study is a multicenter, observer-blinded, superiority, two-armed RCT which will include patients from four clinical departments at Vestre Viken Hospital Trust, Norway. We aim to include 100 patients with moderate to strong suicidal problems, as defined by a score of 13 or more on Beck’s Scale for Suicide Ideation - Current. Patients are included regardless of diagnosis. Randomization will be performed using a stratified four-block procedure with treatment unit as the stratification variable. The duration of treatment will vary depending on patients’ needs and clinical assessments. Patients are interviewed by research staff at four checkpoints: baseline, 2 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months. Central outcome measures are the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation - Current, Outcome Questionnaire – 45, and Suicide Attempt Self-Injury Count.

Discussion

This pragmatic trial is effectuated within the Public Health Care System in Norway, where patients have multiple problems and diagnoses and therapists have a high work load. Results from this trial are highly generalizable to a typical everyday clinical setting, and one should expect similar results if CAMS is implemented in the future as a standard component in specialized mental health care systems.

Trial registration

Open Science Framework: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/JHRM2. Registered 5 July 2015. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02685943. Registered on 8 February 2016.

Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance (ASAD): A confirmatory factor analysis with 1442 psychiatric inpatients

Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance (ASAD) is a newly proposed diagnostic entity that characterizes rapid onset suicidal intent. This study aims to confirm the factor structure of ASAD among psychiatric inpatients, and to determine the clinical utility of ASAD in predicting suicide attempt status. Overall, 1442 psychiatric inpatients completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing symptoms theorized to comprise the ASAD construct. Utilizing these data, a confirmatory factor analysis with a one-factor solution was performed. Regression analyses were employed to determine if the ASAD construct predicted past suicide attempts, and analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were employed to determine if ASAD symptoms differed by the presence and number of past suicide attempts. The one-factor solution indicated good fit: χ(2)(77) = 309.1, p < 0.001, Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) = 0.96, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.97, root-mean-square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.05. Controlling for depressive disorders and current symptoms, the ASAD construct significantly predicted the presence of a past suicide attempt. Moreover, ASAD differentiated in the expected directions between individuals with a history of multiple suicide attempts, individuals with a single suicide attempt, and individuals with no history of a suicide attempt. Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance (ASAD) appears to be a unified construct that predicts suicidal behavior and is distinct from an already-defined mood disorder.