Enhancing Suicide Prevention in Emergency Care via Telehealth (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement is to solicit research to develop, optimize and test mental health telehealth methods (i.e., without involving in-person interaction between a mental health clinician and the patient) to help evaluate and treat emergency department (ED) patients with suicide risk, compared to usual care of such patients in emergency departments without adequate on-site mental health specialty consultation. Primary research questions include if the use of telehealth methods affects the proportion of ED patients who are (1) considered at imminent risk for suicide, (2) boarded in the ED due to suicide risk, and (3) require hospitalization for suicide risk; (4) whether use of telehealth methods affects the rate of within-encounter provision of evidence-based suicide prevention interventions; and whether use of telehealth methods affects (5) the rates of suicide ideation, attempts and deaths, and (6) health care use and costs, in the year after an index ED visit in which a patient was identified with suicide risk. To inform future implementation of telehealth enabled suicide prevention practices in the ED, qualitative data on patient and provider views of telehealth provision of suicide prevention practices (feasibility and acceptability of clinical decision making; clinical workflows; ease of use of technology) are sought.