Developing an Intervention to Address Suicide Risk During Substance Use Disorder

Existing research indicates that problematic alcohol and drug use are closely linked to both fatal and non-fatal suicide attempts. Given the strong association between substance use and suicide, an episode of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment provides a unique opportunity to decrease the likelihood of suicidal behaviors. However, there are no data on the effectiveness of specific interventions designed to decrease suicidal thoughts and behaviors during an episode of SUD treatment in individuals at high risk for suicide. Patients for this trial will be screened at the SUD treatment site for a combination of a past suicide attempt and current suicidal ideation and will be randomized to CBT or control conditions. All participants in the pilot randomized controlled trial will be assessed at baseline, at the end of treatment, and at a 3-month follow-up. From a public health perspective, SUD treatment programs contain large numbers of patients at high risk for future suicidal behaviors and therefore have the potential to play a central role in our nation's efforts to decrease suicide.