Is the outpatient mental health workforce ready to save lives? Suicide prevention training, knowledge, self‐efficacy, and clinical practices prior to the implementation of a statewide suicide prevention initiative

Labouliere, Christa D.; Green, Kelly L.; Vasan, Prabu; Cummings, Anni; Layman, Deborah; Kammer, Jamie; Rahman, Mahbubur; Brown, Gregory K.; Finnerty, Molly; Stanley, Bárbara

doi:10.1111/sltb.12708

Cited by 15 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…However, based on the final model participants who reported higher perceived capability at baseline tended to have had greater formal and informal training, more years of experience in suicide prevention, and to be more likely to have experienced client suicide and/or suicide attempt and to report fewer SRA related fears. The association between perceived capability at baseline and the amount of formal and informal training is consistent with the results of both LoParo et al (28,52). Also, the finding that perceived capability in SRA was associated with having prior experience of a client suicide/attempt and lower number of fears around SRA is consistent with previous studies (53,54), and in accordance with a systematic review (55).…”

Section: Clinical Characteristics and Pre-training Competenciessupporting

confidence: 90%

Impact of Systematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) Protocol Training on Mental Health Professionals' Attitudes, Perceived Capabilities, Knowledge, and Reluctance to Intervene

et al. 2022

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Background and AimsSystematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) protocol and associated training were developed with the key objectives of supporting clinicians to conduct a suicide enquiry, obtaining a comprehensive account of psycho-social factors contributing to suicidality, and collaboratively developing a safety plan with clients. STARS training aims to address knowledge, attitudes and capabilities that influence intervention behavior/skills. This study aimed to examine associations between clinician characteristics and pre-training competencies in suicide risk assessment (SRA), as well as the impact of STARS training workshop on clinician competencies; and to determine the predictors of SRA training outcomes.MethodAustralian mental health professionals working with suicidal persons who undertook the STARS 2-day face-to-face workshop between 2018 and 2020 completed an online survey at pre- and post-training. Of the 222 participants who completed the pre-training questionnaire, 144 (64.9%) also completed the post-training questionnaire. Participants were mostly female (75.7%), had completed a university degree (86.4%), had <10 years of experience in suicide prevention (71.7%), and were allied and mental health professionals (78.1%). We used linear mixed-effects regression for statistical analyses.ResultsSTARS participants who reported higher perceived capability at baseline had significantly greater formal and informal training, more years of experience in suicide prevention, and were more likely to have experienced client suicide and/or suicide attempt and to report fewer SRA related fears. We found overall significant positive impacts of STARS training on clinician competencies (attitudes, perceived capability, declarative knowledge) from pre- to post-training. The most distinct changes following STARS training were for perceived capability and declarative knowledge. Participants who had more positive attitudes after training were significantly more likely to have had less prior supervision/mentoring. Reluctance to intervene was not found to significantly change after training.ConclusionsWe found evidence that attitudes, perceived capability and declarative knowledge changed positively from pre- to post-STARS training among mental health professionals. Underpinned by the minimum standardized SRA competencies, STARS training may be critical for informing evidence-based knowledge and skills in SRA and safety planning.

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Section: Clinical Characteristics and Pre-training Competenciessupporting

confidence: 90%

Impact of Systematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) Protocol Training on Mental Health Professionals' Attitudes, Perceived Capabilities, Knowledge, and Reluctance to Intervene

et al. 2022

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“…We hypothesize that NPs will endorse self-efficacy working with suicidal clients, familiarity using evidence-based assessment procedures, and identifying best practices for suicide prevention [ 45 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statewide Assessment of North Carolina Nurse Practitioners' Knowledge of and Attitudes Toward Suicide Awareness and Prevention: Protocol for a Statewide Mixed Methods Study

Whitaker-Brown¹,

Cornelius²,

Smoot³

et al. 2023

JMIR Res Protoc

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Background Suicide is a major public health problem, which affects people of all ages and ethnicities. Despite being preventable, the rates of suicide have steadily climbed (more than a third) over the past 2 decades. Objective Nurse practitioners (NPs) must be responsible for recognizing suicide risk and providing appropriate treatment referrals in addition to having an important role in suicide prevention. The reasons why NPs may not pursue suicide prevention training are their lack of suicide awareness and prevention, limited experiences with suicidal patients, and the stigma associated with mental illness. Before we begin to address the gaps within suicide awareness and prevention skills, we need to first examine NPs’ knowledge of and attitudes (stigma) toward suicide prevention. Methods This study will comprise a mixed methods approach. First, quantitative data will be collected using the Suicide Knowledge and Skills Questionnaireand the Suicide Stigma Scale (Brief version) questionnaire. An email will be sent to the NPs explaining the purpose of the study. If they consent, they will click on a link to access the surveys on a secure site. In our previous research with this sample, email reminders to nonresponders after 2 and 4 weeks were sent. The quantitative component will be used to inform the qualitative interviews of this study. The Suicide Knowledge and Skills Questionnaire is a 13-item questionnaire comprising 2 subscales: suicide knowledge and suicide skills. All questions are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1=completely disagree to 5=completely agree). The survey has been shown to differentiate between those with suicide training and those without and has a Cronbach α score of .84. The Suicide Stigma Scale (Brief version) is a 16-item survey that assesses stigma regarding suicide. The items are measured on a 5-point Likert scale (1: strongly disagree to 5: strongly agree) and have a Cronbach α of .98. Results This study was funded by the Faculty Research Grants program through the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Institutional review board approval was obtained in April 2022. Recruitment occurred between summer and winter 2022. Interview conduction began in December 2022 and will conclude in March 2023. Data will be analyzed during spring and summer 2023. Conclusions The study results will add to the literature on NPs’ knowledge of and attitudes (stigma) toward suicide prevention. It represents a first step in addressing gaps within suicide awareness and prevention skills, among NPs in their respective practice settings. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/39675

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“…The Zero Suicide Workforce Survey (ZSWS) 12 is an 80-item measure created for the Zero Suicide project. It assesses clinician demographics, exposure to patient suicide, formal training in suicide prevention, knowledge of suicide prevention best practices, clinical assessment and intervention practices, intentions to utilize suicide prevention clinical practices, self-efficacy for engaging in suicide prevention clinical practices, comfort working with suicidal patients, suicide prevention attitudes, and organizational climate (copy of measure available by request).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Patient Suicide on Professional Practice Among Mental Health Providers

Spruch-Feiner

Labouliere

Brodsky

et al. 2022

Journal of Psychiatric Practice

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Introduction:The loss of a patient to suicide has an enormous impact on clinicians, but few studies have examined its effects. Method: In this retrospective study, we compared clinicians who have and have not experienced a patient suicide using a survey of 2157 outpatient clinicians from 169 New York clinics to determine differences in their suicide prevention knowledge, practices, training, and self-efficacy.Results: Approximately 25% of the clinician respondents lost patients to suicide; psychiatrists, nurses/nurse practitioners, and those with more years of experience were disproportionately affected. After controlling for these demographic/professional differences, clinicians who had experienced patient suicide reported feeling that they had insufficient training, despite actually having more suicide prevention training, greater knowledge of suicide prevention practices, and feeling more comfortable working with suicidal patients than clinicians who had not lost a patient to suicide. There were no differences in self-efficacy or utilization of evidence-based clinical practices. Conclusions: Controlling for demographic/ professional differences, clinicians who experienced a patient suicide had more training, knowledge, and felt more comfortable working with suicidal patients. It is critical that sufficient training be available to clinicians, not only to reduce patient deaths, but also to help clinicians increase their comfort, knowledge, skill, and ability to support those bereaved by suicide loss.

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Is the outpatient mental health workforce ready to save lives? Suicide prevention training, knowledge, self‐efficacy, and clinical practices prior to the implementation of a statewide suicide prevention initiative

Cited by 15 publications

References 23 publications

Impact of Systematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) Protocol Training on Mental Health Professionals' Attitudes, Perceived Capabilities, Knowledge, and Reluctance to Intervene

Impact of Systematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) Protocol Training on Mental Health Professionals' Attitudes, Perceived Capabilities, Knowledge, and Reluctance to Intervene

Statewide Assessment of North Carolina Nurse Practitioners' Knowledge of and Attitudes Toward Suicide Awareness and Prevention: Protocol for a Statewide Mixed Methods Study

Effects of Patient Suicide on Professional Practice Among Mental Health Providers

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