A Proven Roadmap to Reduce Suicides Starts With Transformative Healthcare

Pew Charitable Trusts (09/06/22) Corr, Allison

The Pew Charitable Trusts has partnered with the Zero Suicide Institute to implement nationwide deployment of Zero Suicide, a proven strategy for helping the U.S. healthcare system improve the quality of suicide care. The institute spearheads Zero Suicide initiatives domestically and internationally, offering training and consultation and overseeing the online Zero Suicide Toolkit. Users can employ the toolkit to implement the Zero Suicide framework, which acknowledges the critical part clinicians and healthcare settings can play in preventing, identifying, and treating suicide risk. The framework's developers cited evidence indicating that healthcare settings that pursue the elimination of suicides among patients spur systematic changes that enhance access to services and the quality and coordination of care. The framework's core components include guiding systemwide cultural change emphasizing suicide reduction; educating a proficient, confident, and caring workforce; identifying at-risk individuals through comprehensive screening and assessment; following a suicide care management plan to engage at-risk individuals; applying evidence-based treatments for suicidal thoughts and behaviors; supportively transitioning individuals through care; and augmenting policies and procedures via continuous quality improvement.

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