Understanding suicide prevention services in pediatric primary care: Feedback from primary care staff

Primary care (PC) represents a widely accessed health care service for youths and families in the United States. In recent years, there has been an increase in youth presenting to PC with suicidal thoughts and behaviors. This study aims to better understand current suicide prevention practices and provider perspectives regarding suicide prevention practices in PC with pediatric populations. Two studies (one using focus groups, the other using individual interviews) were conducted with 40 PC staff (including physicians and physician assistants, integrated behavioral health staff, nurses and nurse practitioners, and clinic leaders) from pediatric PC clinics in Washington State. Focus groups/interviews elicited feedback on current suicide care practices, staff and clinic needs, barriers, facilitators, and suggestions for improvement. Focus groups/interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results were similar across clinics and highlight challenges and needs for pediatric PC including time limitations, lack of resources for parents, need for additional provider training in suicide prevention, need for team-based approaches, need for standardized and streamlined pathways for patients at different risk levels, and need for integrating screening and intervention components into existing workflows. Overall, results suggest that suicide care is difficult to implement within PC contexts. Understanding PC staff needs, barriers, and facilitators is imperative to adapt feasible suicide care pathways for PC. Results highlight important needs and key components for implementation strategies to target. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).