|
Abstract
|
In the United States annually there are 42,000 breast cancer deaths and 52,000 colorectal cancer deaths. Importantly, these leading killers have seen notable mortality declines over several decades largely due to robust screening, early detection, and use of proven clinical interventions (Caswell-Jin et al., 2024; Siegel et al., 2023). It is unimaginable that healthcare providers would disregard the use of evidence-based clinical practices for identifying and treating individuals for leading causes of death. To do otherwise would be utterly unacceptable within contemporary healthcare delivery. Yet evidence-based treatment approaches to suicidal thoughts and behaviors are routinely underutilized by providers.
Suicide is a global issue, taking more than 700,000 lives annually (https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/suicide). Provisional data in the US for 2022 indicate that there were 49,449 suicides in the country--the highest suicide death count in recorded history (www.cdc.gov/nchs). Moreover, 2,553,000 American adults and teens reported attempting suicide that year and a whopping 16,600,000 Americans reported serious thoughts of suicide (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2023). For individuals (and families) facing a suicide crisis, finding effective care can be fraught with challenges including timely access to care, insurance barriers, stigma, and the taboo to openly discuss it. While not all will access health-care providers for support or treatment, for those who do have the courage to ask for help, they should expect nothing less than compassion, clinical skill, and a reliance on proven treatments.
Zero Suicide
Zero Suicide is a quality improvement framework that transforms system-wide suicide care, establishing suicide prevention as a core health-care responsibility in the US and abroad (National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention, Clinical Care & Intervention Task Force, 2012). Seven core elements comprise the model: "lead," "train," and "improve" are the structural components embedded throughout the system and necessary for change success, fidelity, and continuous quality improvement. "Identify," "engage," "treat," and "transition" are clinical components of the model and define the care patients should receive. ...
Language: en |