A suicide safety protocol with vulnerable populations with chronic physical health conditions
A pragmatic protocol implementation among displaced Myanmar adults in Thailand
Bibliographic Data
Suicide is a serious global health problem with ~73% deaths by suicide occurring in low- or middle-income countries (LMICs), many of which are among people experiencing humanitarian emergencies. Few guidelines outline specific steps and strategies to tackle suicide risk and manage post-attempt consequences in these settings, leaving program implementers with limited information to translate guidance to practice. This article describes the implementation of the Common Elements Treatment Approach (CETA) suicide safety protocol as part of a randomized controlled trial in northern Thailand for displaced adults from Myanmar with chronic physical health conditions. The CETA safety protocol has been used in many trials and programs to screen for and manage suicide risk, including in a prior CETA effectiveness trial with Myanmar adults. In this article, we describe how this safety protocol was adapted for the study setting, and utilized to effectively screen, assess suicidal thoughts and behaviors, develop and manage action plans for study participants with active suicidal ideation. We present three illustrative case descriptions of individuals with whom we implemented the safety protocol to highlight how suicide risk intersects with physical illness, psychosocial stressors and structural vulnerability. Reflections on feasibility, acceptability and adaptations - such as language translation, culturally grounded referral pathways and training for nonspecialist providers - are shared to inform future implementation. Our findings support the implementation of suicide safety protocols within humanitarian programming and offer practical insights for global health practitioners and policymakers working in similarly complex settings
Injury prevention · Occupational safety and health · Poison control · Protocol (science · Psychosocial · Referral · Suicide prevention · Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation · Human Factors and Ergonomics · Migration, Health and Trauma · Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
Safety Planning Intervention
A Common Elements Treatment Approach for Adult Mental Health Problems in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Building capacity in mental health interventions in low resource countries
Suicide Prevention Strategies
A randomized-controlled trial of community-based transdiagnostic psychotherapy for veterans and internally displaced persons in Ukraine
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |