Are Genetic Counselors Screening for Adolescent Suicide Risk?

October 22, 2019 updated by: National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

Are Genetic Counselors Screening Adolescents for Suicide Risk? A Mixed Methods Study

Background:

- Suicide is one of the main causes of death for adolescents in the U.S. The most effective way to decrease suicide is by training doctors to recognize the risk factors in their clients. One risk factor for suicide is chronic illness. So pediatric genetic counselors come across high-risk clients. But the suicide risk assessment (SRA) practices of these counselors are not well known. Researchers want to study learn more about this.

Objectives:

- To describe the practices, attitudes, and beliefs of genetic counselors about SRA of adolescents.

Eligibility:

- Genetic counselors who see adolescents ages 10 21

Design:

  • A study will be open to a listserv for genetic counselors.
  • Participants will take a survey on their own.
  • The survey will be online on a secure website.
  • Participants will give data about themselves. This can include age, gender, job, etc.
  • The survey will be about 60 questions.
  • The survey will take around 20 25 minutes.
  • The questions are about participants experiences, practices, attitudes, and beliefs about SRA.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Detailed Description

This study proposes to describe the practices, attitudes, and beliefs of genetic counselors in relation to suicide risk assessment (SRA) of their adolescent clients. Suicide is a major public health issue and one of the leading causes of death for adolescents in the U.S. Analysis of suicide prevention campaigns has shown that the most effective way to decrease suicide is by training physicians to recognize suicide risk factors in their patients . However, pediatricians do not consistently screen youth for suicide risk during routine check-ups. As chronic illness is an additional risk factor for suicide, pediatric genetic counselors encounter particularly high-risk clients and are well-positioned to assess for suicide risk due to the psychosocial nature of their work. However, the SRA practices of genetic counselors are largely unknown. In this study, the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change is used as a framework to describe how genetic counselors SRA self-efficacy and perceptions of the pros and cons of SRA relate to stages of readiness and practices of assessing clients for suicide risk. Specifically, we will be surveying genetic counselors about their practices, attitudes and beliefs concerning SRA of adolescent clients. First, we will determine genetic counselors frequency of SRA and their stage of readiness for routine screening. Second, we will measure genetic counselors SRA self-efficacy and their perceptions of the pros and cons of screening their clients. We will examine whether self-efficacy and perceptions of pros and cons are predictors of genetic counselors stage of readiness for routine suicide screening. Finally, we will qualitatively assess genetic counselors perceptions of the usability of a validated suicide screening tool (the ASQ) in genetic counseling sessions and their interest in receiving suicide screening training. We will use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods design in which counselors will complete an online questionnaire with quantitative components and open-ended responses. Participants will be recruited through the National Society of Genetic Counselors Student Research Survey listserv.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
267

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
        • National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), 9000 Rockville Pike

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 100 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

  • INCLUSION CRITERIA:

Participants in this study will be English speaking women and men who are graduates of accredited genetic counseling programs. Those who currently or within the past year have worked in-person with adolescent patients between the ages of 10 and 21 may be included in the survey.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Observational Models: Case-Only
  • Time Perspectives: Cross-Sectional

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Previous performance of adolescent patient suicide risk assessment
Time Frame: Ongoing
Ongoing

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 22, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 31, 2016

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 24, 2017

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 30, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 30, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
July 1, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 23, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 22, 2019

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 24, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 999915152
  • 15-HG-N152

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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