Over the past decade, there has been an alarming and rapid rise in pediatric mental health crises, including a dramatic rise in suicide rates.
In fact, suicide is the second-leading cause of death for youth ages 10 to 24. And studies show that nearly 1 in 5 youth have seriously considered suicide with 1 in 11 saying they made a suicide attempt within the past year.
These numbers are staggering, yet youth suicide awareness remains low in our communities.
“Many people are hesitant to talk about suicide in children,” said Corrie Ziegman, associate chief nursing officer at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital.
“We may think about ourselves when we were children. Maybe we were riding bikes and playing with Barbies, and the thought of ever having contemplated suicide may be hard for us to understand, but there are youth out there who are struggling.”
September is Suicide Prevention Month, and there’s no better time to build awareness around the sobering reality of youth suicide, as well as to offer a hopeful glimpse into an ongoing initiative at Michigan Medicine that is working to reverse this worrying trend.
Helping to improve outcomes
In 2022, Mott was the first hospital in state of Michigan to partner with Zero Suicide, a national collaborative built on the guiding principle that suicide can be prevented and that our health systems have an important role to play in improving outcomes.
“We have a real opportunity at the children's hospital to prevent suicide, minimize risk, and educate and empower youth, families and their care teams,” said Nasuh Malas, M.D., clinical associate professor and associate chair for child and adolescent psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry.
“Zero Suicide offers the aspirational goal of minimizing suicide risk through comprehensive review of all care pathways, workflows and resources that interface with individuals and families at-risk, as well as provides an evidence-based and practical guide to the holistic transformation of health systems towards safer suicide care.”
Since its initial kick-off, the Zero Suicide Initiative at Michigan Medicine launched surveys to help identify potential gaps in suicide prevention practices across the health system, then used these insights to craft a new approach to care. They created an oversight committee and brought in key stakeholders across Mott to reflect on planned activities and offer their expertise and guidance. Most importantly, the working group included the voices of families impacted by suicide to help inform any new processes before they were implemented.
“Lived experience is crucial to this work,” said Malas. “We look to these families, integrating their wisdom to guide our steps in preventing suicide.”
‘Their child’s needs mattered’
Through this robust collaboration, Mott created training opportunities to empower staff, implemented new suicide screening guidelines based on the latest evidence-based practices, and instituted post-discharge follow-up calls to check in with families after they’ve left the hospital to make sure they are doing okay and that their families are safe.
“Through these calls, families have expressed appreciation for the time, support and resources they were provided by the hospital staff,” said Syma Khan, M.S.W., M.P.H., clinical social worker in the Department of Psychiatry. “Parents reflected that they felt treated with respect and like their child’s needs mattered to the entire team.”
The Zero Suicide team at Mott also created educational resources, including “coping kits” given to youth with suicide risk who are awaiting psychiatry admission in the Emergency Department.
Taken together, all of these systemic changes have made a positive impact on youth and their families. One family, uncertain what to do and worried about their child attempting suicide due to worsening mood and isolation, felt that the post-discharge follow-up call they received provided them a space to ask questions and feel reassured that coming back to the Emergency Department was the right next step.
“They felt support around being able to make a plan that ensured their child’s safety,” said Khan.
Suicide prevention work not only leads to better patient care outcomes, but it also supports our workforce who see our patients at their most vulnerable.
“Suicide touches us all in different ways,” said Khan. “This initiative allows us to reduce stigma around suicide, create safe space for conversation, and increases awareness of resources for support.”
These early successes highlight just how crucial the Zero Suicide initiative is to the improvement of suicide prevention care across our health system.
“With the growing mental health crisis in youth, it is on all of us to do as much as we can to educate, train, and equip our teams to help struggling children and families,” said Emily Jacobson, M.D., clinical assistant professor of pediatrics. “Our ultimate goal is to be leaders in suicide prevention efforts across the state and country with integrated work across the health system that reaches members of our community.”
Want to help make our community suicide safe?
No matter where you work within Michigan Medicine, there are actions you can take to promote suicide prevention this month — and all year long.
1. Learn more about suicide and help share what you learn with those close to you.
“Inform yourself. Inform your friends and family and those who you interact with ... the biggest and most important thing we can do is inform,” said Ziegman.
2. Take five minutes this month to learn the warning signs for suicide.
“Knowing the warning signs is essential in prevention work and saves lives,” said Khan.
3. If you’re worried about someone, don’t be afraid to ask them whether they have been thinking about suicide.
“It’s okay to ask,” said Malas. “We’re not inserting the idea of suicide when we ask about it. That’s a common misconception. In fact, many folks who have had suicidal risk say ‘if only somebody asked me, maybe I could have felt better.’ It’s really important to have a trusting, safe conversation.”
4. Listen and support.
If someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, listen without judgment. Recognize the difficulties that person has been facing and help validate the feelings that come with those challenges.
“Talk with people if you are worried about them,” said Jacobson.
Khan agreed. “Remind them you care and are there for them. Support them in identifying community resources for on-going follow-up and check-in with them over time to make sure they’re getting the support they need.”
5. Remember 988.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, text or call 988 to reach the national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for support any time of the day or night. Click here to add 988 as a contact to your phone so you access it quickly in an emergency.
To learn more about the Zero Suicide Initiative and the positive changes being implemented across our health system, tune into the latest Wrap episode, which can be found via YouTube at the top of the page. If you have questions about this initiative or would like to get involved, please contact the Zero Suicide Lead Team at [email protected].
