Online Suicide Risk Assessment and Management Training

Area of Science:

• Mental Health Professional Training
• Suicide Prevention
• Online Education

Background:

• Many mental health professionals (MHPs) lack adequate training and confidence in managing youth at risk for suicide.
• Accessibility of traditional suicide risk assessment and management training for MHPs is often limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of an online training program, Question, Persuade, Refer, Treat (QPRT), in enhancing MHPs' skills for working with suicidal youth.
• Assessed changes in MHPs' knowledge, attitudes, social norms, and behavioral control related to suicide risk assessment and management.

Main Methods:

• 225 MHPs across three major US urban areas participated in the online QPRT training.
• Pre- and post-training assessments measured suicide prevention literacy, attitudes, social norms, and perceived behavioral control.
• Training engagement and completion data were also collected.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements were observed in suicide prevention literacy and perceived behavioral control post-training.
• While most knowledge domains improved, attitudes and some specific knowledge areas did not show significant changes.
• MHPs reported high satisfaction with the QPRT online training program.

Conclusions:

• The study provides preliminary evidence supporting online training for MHPs in suicide risk assessment and management.
• Online programs offer an accessible and engaging method for equipping MHPs with advanced suicide prevention skills, overcoming barriers to traditional training.