Efficient, Holistic, Heuristic and Semi-structured Suicide Assessment Tool (EHSSA) - Very Accurate Prediction of Risk. (EHSSA)

Predicting Suicide: E.H.S.S.A. - An Efficient, Holistic, Heuristic and Semi-structured Suicide Assessment Tool for Accurately Predicting, in a Specific Patient, the Risk of Suicide in the Reasonably Foreseeable Future. (EHSSA)

Many studies have found that insights regarding suicide risk-factors for cohorts does not translate to practical value in the identification of such risk in specific individuals.

E.H.S.S.A. - a suicide assessment tool that was empirically designed by an emergency psychiatry department (P.E.S.P. of Bergen County) in its effort to accurately predict, in specific patients, the risk of suicide attempts in the reasonably foreseeable future. It is of a unique paradigm that combines critical elements of holism, heuristics and semi-structured design.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Suicide Risk
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: EHSSA- An Efficient and Holistic/Heuristic Semi-structured Suicide Assessment Tool

Detailed Description

Objective:

Many studies have found that insight regarding suicide risk-factors for cohorts does not translate to practical value in the identification of such risk in specific individuals.

This performance improvement study formally examined the effectiveness of "EHSSA" (efficient, holistic/heuristic semi-structured suicide-risk assessment) - an empirically derived tool designed by this emergency psychiatry department. It is a suicide assessment tool for predicting in a specific patient (as opposed to a cohort), the risk of serious suicide attempts in the reasonably foreseeable future.

Methods:

At P.E.S.P. (Psychiatric Emergency Screening Program) of Bergen County of New Jersey, a prospective performance improvement study was done on all patients (N = 1,505) that had presented with psychiatric crisis to the department over the course of a 6 month period, (of which approximately 50% had significant suicidal ideations). The only exclusionary criteria was active delirium.

Each patient was evaluated using "EHSSA" by departmentally trained mental health professionals. Patients were deemed to either require hospitalization or be safe to be discharged to the community (with appropriate outpatient referrals). Those that were discharged (N = 137) were followed up with phone calls approximately 15 days post discharge.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 1505

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New Jersey
    • Paramus, New Jersey, United States, 07652
      • Care Plus NJ, Inc.- PESP (Psychiatric Emergency Screening Program)

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

All patients of any age/gender/economic class with or without dementia or substance use disorders who presented to the psychiatric emergency program (P.E.S.P.- Psychiatric Emergency Screening Program of Bergen County) in psychiatric distress/crisis during a discreet 6 month period.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients of any age/gender/economic class with or without dementia and/or substance use disorders
• All patients presenting to P.E.S.P.(Psychiatric Emergency Screening Program of Bergen County) in psychiatric distress/crisis.

Exclusion Criteria:

- Active Delirium.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
All Patients evaluated by PESP during the trial period.; EHSSA tool applied to every patient in cohort.	Other: EHSSA- An Efficient and Holistic/Heuristic Semi-structured Suicide Assessment Tool; EHSSA will be used to evaluate every patient for suicide risk.; Other Names: EHSSA

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Rate or number of completed or attempted suicide.	Reported/ascertained cases among the cohort of completed or serious suicide attempts within 15 days of EHSSA evaluation and discharge to community or until the start of treatment with an outpatient mental health professional, whichever came sooner.	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Care Plus NJ, Inc.
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Charles Kim, M.D., Care Plus NJ, Inc.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): August 1, 2019
• Primary Completion (Actual): January 31, 2020
• Study Completion (Actual): January 31, 2020

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 10, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 14, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): May 17, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 1, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 27, 2021
• Last Verified: May 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Heuristic; Holistic; Suicide Risk Assessment Tool; Semi-structured; Predictive Capacity
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Self-Injurious Behavior; Suicide
• Other Study ID Numbers: EHSSA prospective study- PESP

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No