Electronic, Self-Guided Safety Plan in Adolescents: Project SAFER

Study Summary

Suicide is a leading cause of death for youth 10-24, and nearly ¼ of adolescents report nonfatal suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB). However, traditional interventions (e.g., multi-session therapy protocols) are contingent upon (1) access to treatment, (2) involvement of parents/guardians (hereafter parents), and (3) disclosure of risk to treatment providers. Unfortunately, adolescents are frequently hesitant to disclose STB to healthcare providers and parents for reasons including shame, stigma, and fear of hospitalization, with even lower rates of disclosure among queer youth-including those with diverse genders and sexualities- who are at disproportionately high risk for STB. Related to these concerns, most youth at risk for suicide, as well as other mental health challenges, do not access any mental healthcare. Self-guided, brief digital interventions may be a powerful adolescent suicide prevention tool. With their relative accessibility-they can be completed privately, at home, for at no cost-such interventions are well-suited for youth not accessing traditional care. Thus, effective digital adaptation of brief suicide prevention interventions is a promising frontier for adolescent suicide prevention. A strong candidate for digital adaptation is the Safety Planning Intervention (SPI), a brief (\~5-10 minute) single-session intervention shown to significantly reduce STB in adults. In the SPI, people at risk for suicide receive brief education about suicidal thoughts and crises before developing a personalized, one-page plan with skills and resources to use during future suicide crises, when it is difficult to think clearly. There is strong evidence across several randomized control trials (RCTs) that SPI reduce suicidal behaviors in adults compared to those who received treatment as usual. Despite widespread use in outpatient and acute clinical settings across ages, there is a paucity of adequately-powered RCTs testing whether the SPI (in any format) reduces

Interventions

• BEHAVIORAL Psychoeducation about Suicide Crisis Resources (Control Intervention)
• BEHAVIORAL Experimental: Self-Guided Electronic Safety Plan Intervention