The Patient Safety Screener: A Brief Tool to Detect Suicide Risk

This seven-minute video describes the first part of the Patient Safety Screener, the Patient Safety Screener (PSS-3), a tool for identifying patients in the acute care setting who may be at risk of suicide. The PSS-3 can be administered to all patients who come to the acute care setting, not just those presenting with psychiatric issues.

The second part of the Patient Safety Screener, the ED-SAFE Secondary Screener (ESS), can be used to guide suicide risk stratification for patients who screen positive on the PSS-3.

See below for hard copies of both components of the Patient Safety Screener and everything you will need to implement them in your acute care setting.

Patient Safety Screener Tools

The Patient Safety Screener is designed to screen for non-negligible risk and provide initial stratification for those with non-negligible risk into mild, moderate, or high risk. It can be used as a single, nine-item instrument. In addition, the first three items (the PSS-3) and the final six items (the ED-SAFE Secondary Screener, or ESS) can be used separately. For example, the PSS-3 alone can be used as a universal screening tool, or in targeted populations, such as those presenting with an emotional or behavioral health complaint. The ESS can be used as a secondary screening tool if another primary screening instrument that assesses ideation and behavior is positive.

Accompanying Materials

The following resources will help you administer both parts of the Patient Safety Screener, plan for patients who screen positive, and implement screening sustainably and to a high standard. All resources are from the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMass Medical) except for the five SPRC resources relating to patient suicide care management plans mentioned in the video.

PSS-3

• PSS-3 Primary Screener and Tip Sheet (UMass Medical)
• PSS-3 Pocket Card (UMass Medical)
• Printable PSS-3 Tool (UMass Medical)

ESS

• ED-SAFE Secondary Screener and Tip Sheet (UMass Medical)
• Printable ED-SAFE Secondary Screener (UMass Medical)

Training materials

• Primary Screening for Suicide Risk training presentation (UMass Medical)
• Secondary Screening for Suicide Risk training presentation (UMass Medical)
• PSS-3 Implementation Scenarios (UMass Medical)

Establishing Patient Suicide Care Management Plans

• Suicide Care Management Plans information sheet (UMass Medical)
• Caring for Adult Patients with Suicide Risk: A Consensus Guide for Emergency Departments — This guide helps emergency department (ED) professionals establish patient suicide care management plans that include screening, comprehensive suicide risk assessment, brief intervention, discharge planning, and referral and follow-up procedures.
• Preventing Suicide in Emergency Department Patients — This online course teaches emergency department professionals how to implement key components of a patient suicide care management plan like screening, suicide risk assessment, and brief interventions such as safety planning and lethal means counseling.
• How Emergency Departments Can Help Prevent Suicide among At-Risk Patients: Five Brief Interventions — This nine-minute video focuses on five emergency department-based brief interventions that can be used with patients who are awaiting inpatient admission and especially with patients who will be discharged from the ED.
• Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Primary Care Practices — This toolkit contains tools, information, and resources to implement state-of-the art suicide prevention practices that address barriers to treating suicidal patients in the primary care setting.
• Zero Suicide website — This website provides information, resources, and tools for implementing Zero Suicide, which includes establishing policies and procedures that define how patients at risk for suicide will receive seamless care that specifically addresses suicide.
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline wallet cards — List the warning signs of suicide and urges those who exhibit any of the signs to contact a mental health professional or contact the Lifeline. 

*Except for the list of SPRC resources relating to patient suicide care management plans mentioned in the video, these materials are derived from several projects involving a variety of collaborators and funders. These projects include the National Institute of Mental health-funded ED-SAFE (U01MH088278), ED-SAFE 2 (R01MH106726), and System of Safety (R01MH112138).

The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Mental Health or the National Institutes of Health.

For more information, contact Edwin Boudreaux.

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