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Review
. 2023 Apr;21(2):117-128.
doi: 10.1176/appi.focus.20220078. Epub 2023 Apr 14.

Implementing Evidence-Based Suicide Prevention Strategies for Greatest Impact

Nadine Melhem  1 , Christine Yu Moutier  1 , David A Brent  1
Affiliations
Review

Implementing Evidence-Based Suicide Prevention Strategies for Greatest Impact

Nadine Melhem et al. Focus (Am Psychiatr Publ). 2023 Apr.

Abstract

Suicide remains a leading cause of death in the United States and globally. In this review, epidemiological trends in mortality and suicide risk are presented, with consideration given to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. A public health model of suicide prevention with a community and clinical framework, along with advances in scientific discovery, offer new solutions that await widespread implementation. Actionable interventions with evidence for reducing risk for suicidal behavior are presented, including universal and targeted strategies at community, public policy, and clinical levels. Clinical interventions include screening and risk assessment; brief interventions (e.g., safety planning, education, and lethal means counseling) that can be done in primary care, emergency, and behavioral health settings; psychotherapies (cognitive-behavioral, dialectical behavior, mentalization therapy); pharmacotherapy; and systemwide procedures for health care organizations (training, policies, workflow, surveillance of suicide indicators, use of health records for screening, care steps). Suicide prevention strategies must be prioritized and implemented at scale for greatest impact.

Keywords: Suicide and Self-Harm.

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Figures

FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 1.
U.S. suicide rates by age, 2011–2020
FIGURE 2.
FIGURE 2.
Suicide rates by race-ethnicity and sex, 2011–2020
FIGURE 3.
FIGURE 3.
Intervention strategies for an integrated approach to reducing suicide risk
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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