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P50MH127512

Project Grant

Overview

Grant Description
The National Center for Health and Justice Integration for Suicide Prevention - Justice-involved individuals have high rates of trait, state, and precipitating risk factors for suicide, account for a significant proportion of U.S. suicides each year, and many are not well-connected to care.

The National Center for Health and Justice Integration for Suicide Prevention (NCHATS):
(1) Uses contact with the justice system (e.g., police contact, arrest) as a novel indicator of suicide risk in the general population;
(2) Demonstrates how big data systems that efficiently track justice involvement can be linked to health system records and scaled to identify individuals at risk for suicide and connect them to care; and
(3) Examines effectiveness and scalability of suicide prevention approaches using these methods.

Center projects are hybrid effectiveness-implementation studies that examine effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and scalability of suicide prevention activities triggered through linkage of justice and health data.

Given that contact with the justice system is a sign of risk for suicide, big data integration across justice/health systems to flag movement between systems (and therefore suicide risk) provides a novel method of identifying suicide risk in the general population. This approach does not require collecting new data from this hard-to-reach population. Rather, it sets up strategies to efficiently link existing data and to test methods to respond. This is an innovative and potentially scalable approach to identify/address suicide risk for individuals not well-connected with standard health care.

The center is innovative in that it:
(1) Establishes a suicide prevention intervention effectiveness base for a large and high-risk target population, conducting (a) 2 of only 3 fully-powered suicide prevention RCTs in justice populations, and (b) the largest RCTs of any intervention for any condition in a justice-involved population to date;
(2) Develops and manualizes strategies for scalability and sustainment -- understudied areas of implementation science;
(3) Uses contact with the justice system as a novel indicator of suicide risk in the general population;
(4) Uses sociometric identification of key individuals to promote diffusion and dissemination of center approaches;
(5) Demonstrates how efficient, generalizable health and justice system big data linkage is achieved and can be used to automate suicide risk identification and response across health and justice systems at scale. This is extremely rarely done in practice and never before tested as a method of improving health outcomes in justice populations.

By incorporating the few cases of which we are aware into this center, we are poised to rapidly advance the field.

Center aims are to:
(1) Evaluate effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of suicide prevention approaches that use justice contacts as markers of risk and health/justice system data linkage to provide scalable ways to alert providers of this risk;
(2) Maximize scalability, sustainability, relevance, and dissemination of identified approaches and identify, refine, and manualize scalability/sustainment strategies to be fully tested in future trials; and
(3) Promote national research and practice capacity in suicide prevention at justice intercepts.

Partners include jails, police, health plans, healthcare systems, courts, judges, community corrections, racial equity, and lived experience.
Funding Goals
THE MISSION OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH (NIMH) IS TO TRANSFORM THE UNDERSTANDING AND TREATMENT OF MENTAL ILLNESSES THROUGH BASIC AND CLINICAL RESEARCH, PAVING THE WAY FOR PREVENTION, RECOVERY, AND CURE. IN MAY 2020, NIMH RELEASED ITS NEW STRATEGIC PLAN FOR RESEARCH. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN BUILDS ON THE SUCCESSES OF PREVIOUS NIMH STRATEGIC PLANS BY PROVIDING A FRAMEWORK FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND EXPLORATION, AND ADDRESSING NEW CHALLENGES IN MENTAL HEALTH. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN OUTLINES FOUR HIGH-LEVEL GOALS: GOAL 1: DEFINE THE BRAIN MECHANISMS UNDERLYING COMPLEX BEHAVIORS GOAL 2: EXAMINE MENTAL ILLNESS TRAJECTORIES ACROSS THE LIFESPAN GOAL 3: STRIVE FOR PREVENTION AND CURES GOAL 4: STRENGTHEN THE PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT OF NIMH-SUPPORTED RESEARCH THESE FOUR GOALS FORM A BROAD ROADMAP FOR THE INSTITUTE'S RESEARCH PRIORITIES OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, BEGINNING WITH THE FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE OF THE BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR, AND EXTENDING THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED SERVICES THAT IMPROVE PUBLIC HEALTH OUTCOMES. THE INSTITUTE'S OVERALL FUNDING STRATEGY IS TO SUPPORT A BROAD SPECTRUM OF INVESTIGATOR-INITIATED RESEARCH IN FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE, WITH INCREASING USE OF INSTITUTE-SOLICITED INITIATIVES FOR APPLIED RESEARCH WHERE PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT IS A SHORT-TERM MEASURE OF SUCCESS. THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN ALSO ADDRESSES A NUMBER OF CROSS-CUTTING THEMES THAT ARE RELEVANT TO ALL RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY NIMH, THESE THEMES HIGHLIGHT AREAS WHERE NIMH-FUNDED SCIENCE MAY HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT, BRIDGE GAPS, AND OFFER NOVEL APPROACHES TO ACCELERATE ADVANCES IN MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH. FOR EXAMPLE, NIMH VALUES A COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH AGENDA THAT TAKES AN INCLUSIVE APPROACH THAT ENSURES RESEARCH INTERESTS ARE VARIED, MAINTAIN DIVERSE PARTICIPATION AND PARTNERSHIPS, AND ACHIEVE RESEARCH GOALS ACROSS MULTIPLE TIMEFRAMES. THIS INCLUDES DIVERSE METHODOLOGIES, TOOLS, AND MODELS, RESEARCH ADDRESSING COMPLEX BASIC, TRANSLATIONAL, AND APPLIED QUESTIONS, RESEARCH INCLUDING BOTH SEXES AND, AS APPROPRIATE, GENETIC BACKGROUND, AND, PARTICIPANTS FROM DIVERSE RACIAL AND ETHNIC BACKGROUNDS, AND ACROSS GENDER IDENTITIES, GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, NEUROTYPE, AND AGE OFFERING THE BEST POSSIBLE REPRESENTATION, FOR THE BROADEST NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY ULTIMATELY BENEFIT FROM THESE SCIENTIFIC ADVANCES. TO ACCOMPLISH THE GOALS OUTLINED IN THE NEW STRATEGIC PLAN, NIMH WILL SUPPORT RESEARCH THAT AIMS: TO CHARACTERIZE THE GENOMIC, MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND CIRCUIT COMPONENTS CONTRIBUTING TO BRAIN ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTION, TO IDENTIFY THE DEVELOPMENTAL, FUNCTIONAL, AND REGULATORY MECHANISMS RELEVANT TO COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE, AND SOCIAL DOMAINS, ACROSS UNITS OF ANALYSIS, AND, TO GENERATE AND VALIDATE NOVEL TOOLS, TECHNIQUES, AND MEASURES TO QUANTIFY CHANGES IN THE ACTIVITY OF MOLECULES, CELLS, CIRCUITS, AND CONNECTOMES. TO DISCOVER GENE VARIANTS AND OTHER GENOMIC ELEMENTS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF MENTAL ILLNESSES IN DIVERSE POPULATIONS, TO ADVANCE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE COMPLEX ETIOLOGY OF MENTAL ILLNESSES USING MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGIC APPROACHES THAT INCORPORATE INDIVIDUAL GENETIC INFORMATION IN LARGE COHORTS, TO ELUCIDATE HOW HUMAN GENETIC VARIATION AFFECTS THE COORDINATION OF MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND PHYSIOLOGICAL NETWORKS SUPPORTING HIGHER-ORDER FUNCTIONS AND EMERGENT PROPERTIES OF NEUROBIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS, AND, TO DEVELOP NOVEL TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR THE ANALYSIS OF LARGE-SCALE GENETIC, MULTI-OMIC DATA AS IT APPLIES TO MENTAL HEALTH. TO UTILIZE CONNECTOMIC APPROACHES TO IDENTIFY BRAIN NETWORKS AND CIRCUIT COMPONENTS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO VARIOUS ASPECTS OF MENTAL FUNCTION AND DYSFUNCTION, TO DETERMINE THROUGH BRAIN-WIDE ANALYSIS HOW CHANGES IN THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF MOLECULES, CELLS, AND CIRCUITS CONTRIBUTE TO MENTAL ILLNESSES, TO DEVELOP MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND CIRCUIT-LEVEL BIOMARKERS OF IMPAIRED NEURAL FUNCTION IN HUMANS, AND, TO DEVELOP INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES, INCLUDING NEW IMAGING, COMPUTATIONAL, PHARMACOLOGICAL, AND GENETIC TOOLS TO INTERROGATE AND MODULATE CIRCUIT ACTIVITY AND STRUCTURE ALTERED IN MENTAL ILLNESSES. TO ELUCIDATE THE MECHANISMS CONTRIBUTING TO THE TRAJECTORIES OF BRAIN DEVELOPMENT AND BEHAVIOR, AND, TO CHARACTERIZE THE EMERGENCE AND PROGRESSION OF MENTAL ILLNESSES, AND IDENTIFYING SENSITIVE PERIODS FOR OPTIMAL INTERVENTION. TO DETERMINE EARLY RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS, AND RELATED MECHANISMS, TO SERVE AS NOVEL INTERVENTION GROUPS, AND, TO DEVELOP RELIABLE AND ROBUST BIOMARKERS AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS TO PREDICT ILLNESS ONSET, COURSE, AND ACROSS DIVERSE POPULATIONS. TO DEVELOP NOVEL INTERVENTIONS USING A MECHANISM-INFORMED, EXPERIMENTAL THERAPEUTICS APPROACH, AND, TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT MEASUREMENT STRATEGIES TO FACILITATE MECHANISM-BASED INTERVENTION DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING. TO INVESTIGATE PERSONALIZED INTERVENTION STRATEGIES ACROSS DISEASE PROGRESSION AND DEVELOPMENT, AND, TO DEVELOP AND REFINE COMPUTATIONAL APPROACHES AND RESEARCH DESIGNS THAT CAN BE USED TO INFORM AND TEST PERSONALIZED INTERVENTIONS. TO DEVELOP AND TEST APPROACHES FOR ADAPTING, COMBINING, AND SEQUENCING INTERVENTIONS TO ACHIEVE THE GREATEST IMPACT ON THE LIVES AND FUNCTIONING OF PERSONS SEEKING CARE, TO CONDUCT EFFICIENT PRAGMATIC TRIALS THAT EMPLOY NEW TOOLS TO RAPIDLY IDENTIFY, ENGAGE, ASSESS, AND FOLLOW PARTICIPANTS IN THE CONTEXT OF ROUTINE CARE, AND, TO ENHANCE THE PRACTICAL RELEVANCE OF EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH VIA DEPLOYMENT-FOCUSED, HYBRID, EFFECTIVENESS-IMPLEMENTATION STUDIES. TO EMPLOY ASSESSMENT PLATFORMS WITHIN HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS TO ACCURATELY ASSESS THE DISTRIBUTION AND DETERMINANTS OF MENTAL ILLNESSES AND TO INFORM STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVED SERVICES, TO OPTIMIZE REAL-WORLD DATA COLLECTION SYSTEMS TO IDENTIFY STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING ACCESS, QUALITY, EFFECTIVENESS, AND CONTINUITY OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, AND, TO COMPARE ALTERNATIVE FINANCING MODELS TO PROMOTE EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH SERIOUS EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCES AND SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESSES. TO STRENGTHEN PARTNERSHIPS WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTING, SUSTAINING, AND CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES, TO BUILD MODELS TO SCALE-UP EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES FOR USE IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PRIMARY CARE, SPECIALTY CARE AND OTHER SETTINGS, AND, TO DEVELOP DECISION-SUPPORT TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES THAT INCREASE THE EFFECTIVENESS AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTIONS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PRIMARY CARE, SPECIALTY CARE, AND OTHER SETTINGS. TO ADAPT, VALIDATE, AND SCALE-UP PROGRAMS CURRENTLY IN USE THAT IMPROVE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE SERVICE DELIVERY MODELS THAT PROVIDE EVIDENCE-BASED CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF MENTAL ILLNESS, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE SYSTEMS-LEVEL STRATEGIES USING TECHNOLOGY AND OTHER APPROACHES, TO IDENTIFY, SUPPORT, AND MONITOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF EVIDENCE-BASED CARE THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF ILLNESS, AND, TO DEVELOP AND VALIDATE DECISION-MAKING MODELS THAT BRIDGE MENTAL HEALTH, MEDICAL, AND OTHER CARE SETTINGS TO INTEGRATE THE APPROPRIATE CARE FOR PEOPLE WITH SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESSES AND COMORBID MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
Place of Performance
Flint, Michigan 485021902 United States
Geographic Scope
Single Zip Code
Analysis Notes
Amendment Since initial award the total obligations have increased 274% from $3,246,915 to $12,153,341.
Michigan State University was awarded National Center Health & Justice Integration Suicide Prevention (NCHATS) Project Grant P50MH127512 worth $12,153,341 from the National Institute of Mental Health in August 2022 with work to be completed primarily in Flint Michigan United States. The grant has a duration of 5 years and was awarded through assistance program 93.242 Mental Health Research Grants. The Project Grant was awarded through grant opportunity Practice-Based Suicide Prevention Research Centers (P50 Clinical Trial Optional).

Status
(Ongoing)

Last Modified 12/19/25

Period of Performance
8/22/22
Start Date
7/31/27
End Date
74.0% Complete

Funding Split
$12.2M
Federal Obligation
$0.0
Non-Federal Obligation
$12.2M
Total Obligated
100.0% Federal Funding
0.0% Non-Federal Funding

Activity Timeline

Interactive chart of timeline of amendments to P50MH127512

Subgrant Awards

Disclosed subgrants for P50MH127512

Transaction History

Modifications to P50MH127512

Additional Detail

Award ID FAIN
P50MH127512
SAI Number
P50MH127512-503441469
Award ID URI
SAI UNAVAILABLE
Awardee Classifications
Public/State Controlled Institution Of Higher Education
Awarding Office
75N700 NIH National Institute of Mental Health
Funding Office
75N700 NIH National Institute of Mental Health
Awardee UEI
R28EKN92ZTZ9
Awardee CAGE
4B834
Performance District
MI-08
Senators
Debbie Stabenow
Gary Peters

Budget Funding

Federal Account Budget Subfunction Object Class Total Percentage
National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Health and Human Services (075-0892) Health research and training Grants, subsidies, and contributions (41.0) $6,232,512 100%
Modified: 12/19/25