As highlighted in the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent Suicide (1999), effective suicide prevention strategies are sorely needed. Despite substantial knowledge about adolescent suicide risk factors, there is a paucity of research on effective interventions. Few randomized controlled intervention trials have been conducted with suicidal adolescents, and treatment adherence among these adolescents is generally poor. This randomized controlled trial will investigate the efficacy of the Youth-Nominated Support Team Intervention (YST), a psychoeducational, social network intervention that targets two problems common among suicidal adolescents, poor treatment adherence and negative perceptions of family and social support. It targets these problems during a period of high risk for suicidal behavior, the 12-month period following psychiatric hospitalization. Suicidal adolescents (n = 532) will be recruited from the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital at the University of Michigan and Havenwyck Hospital, a large private psychiatric hospital. Adolescents will be randomly assigned to either treatment-as-usual (TAU) or treatment-as-usual plus YST (TAU+YST). Adolescents assigned to TAU+YST will nominate three or four adults from family, school, and community settings to function as support persons. Nominated support persons participate in a psychoeducation session that focuses on the adolescent's psychiatric disorder(s), individualized treatment plan, importance of treatment adherence, and suicide risk factors. During the 3-month YST intervention, support persons maintain regular contact with the adolescent to support treatment adherence and progress toward treatment goals. The YST intervention specialist maintains regular telephone contact with each support person to provide information and address concerns. Adolescents will be contacted for 6-week, 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month assessments. The efficacy of YST will be measured by reductions in (a) severity and frequency of suicidal ideation, (b) severity of depression and anxiety, (c) suicide attempts, (d) internalizing behavior problems, and by improvements in (e) perceived social support, (f) treatment adherence, and (g) adaptive functioning. Repeated measures analyses will test overall intervention effects, the hypothesized moderating effect of gender, and the extent to which intervention effects are maintained. Results of this study are expected to provide information about the effectiveness of YST for suicidal adolescents, addressing a critical gap in our understanding of strategies for improving treatment adherence and reducing suicide risk among these adolescents.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01MH063881-05
Application #
7061682
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZMH1-ITV-D (01))
Program Officer
Sherrill, Joel
Project Start
2002-05-14
Project End
2009-04-30
Budget Start
2006-05-01
Budget End
2009-04-30
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2006
Total Cost
$631,187
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Michigan Ann Arbor
Department
Psychiatry
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
073133571
City
Ann Arbor
State
MI
Country
United States
Zip Code
48109
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Czyz, Ewa K; Berona, Johnny; King, Cheryl A (2016) Rehospitalization of Suicidal Adolescents in Relation to Course of Suicidal Ideation and Future Suicide Attempts. Psychiatr Serv 67:332-8
Cole-Lewis, Yasmin C; Gipson, Polly Y; Opperman, Kiel J et al. (2016) Protective Role of Religious Involvement Against Depression and Suicidal Ideation Among Youth with Interpersonal Problems. J Relig Health 55:1172-88
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Czyz, Ewa K; Berona, Johnny; King, Cheryl A (2015) A prospective examination of the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior among psychiatric adolescent inpatients. Suicide Life Threat Behav 45:243-59
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King, Cheryl A; Jiang, Qingmei; Czyz, Ewa K et al. (2014) Suicidal ideation of psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents has one-year predictive validity for suicide attempts in girls only. J Abnorm Child Psychol 42:467-77
King, Cheryl A; Horwitz, Adam; Berona, Johnny et al. (2013) Acutely suicidal adolescents who engage in bullying behavior: 1-year trajectories. J Adolesc Health 53:S43-50
Czyz, Ewa K; Liu, Zhuqing; King, Cheryl A (2012) Social connectedness and one-year trajectories among suicidal adolescents following psychiatric hospitalization. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol 41:214-26
King, Cheryl A; Kerr, David C R; Passarelli, Michael N et al. (2010) One-year follow-up of suicidal adolescents: parental history of mental health problems and time to post-hospitalization attempt. J Youth Adolesc 39:219-32

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