Support Safe Care Transitions and Create Organizational Linkages
Effective transitions in care can help reduce suicide risk among individuals receiving health or behavioral health services. One example would be a person with suicide risk who connects with outpatient mental health services following an emergency department visit. Unfortunately, far too often these individuals fail to connect with needed services, particularly following a suicidal crisis.
Planning for care transitions, and making them as easy as possible for patients and providers, is an important part of a comprehensive approach to suicide prevention.
Take Action
- Make a follow-up appointment for the patient before discharge from the hospital or inpatient psychiatric facility (ideally, for within 48 hours of discharge).
- Involve family, friends, and other loved ones in the plans for care transition.
- Make follow-up contacts (e.g., by e-mail, text, phone calls) with the patient and check with providers to make sure that the person is receiving follow-up care.
- Develop agreements among hospitals, behavioral health providers, crisis centers, and others to facilitate safe transitions between settings.
- Transmit patient health information to referral providers.
See the Partnerships and Collaboration section of our website to learn more about working with other provider organizations.
Recommended Resources
Zero Suicide Toolkit: Safe Care Transitions
This section of the toolkit provides information and resources addressing safe transitions in care.
Continuity of Care for Suicide Prevention: The Role of Emergency Departments
This guide highlights key steps that emergency departments can take to promote safe care transitions for patients with suicide risk.
Best Practices in Care Transitions for Individuals with Suicide Risk: Inpatient Care to Outpatient Care
This report presents feasible, evidence-based practices to improve patient engagement and safety during the transition from inpatient to outpatient care.
After an attempt guides for families, providers and those being treated in EDs
These three booklets provide guidance on what to expect and what to do during emergency department treatment and continuing care after a suicide attempt.
Re-engineered Discharge (RED) Toolkit
This toolkit describes 12 mutually reinforcing actions that hospitals undertake during and after a hospital stay to ensure safe transitions in care.