International Journal of Emergency Mental Health and Human Resilience
Open Access

Short Communication

The Role of Parents in Safety Planning Interventions with Suicidal Adolescents

Kimberly H. McManama O’Brien^1,2,3*, Laika D. Aguinaldo^2,4, Joanna Almeida^1,5,6, Erina White²

¹Simmons School of Social Work, Boston, MA, USA

²Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

³Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

⁴The Ethelyn R. Strong School of Social Work at Norfolk State University, Norfolk, VA, USA

⁵Harvard Youth Violence Prevention Center, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

⁶Institute for Child, Youth and Family Policy, Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA

*Corresponding Author:

Kimberly H. McManama O’Brien
E-mail: obrik@simmons.edu

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth ages 10-24 in the United States. The time following discharge from an acute care setting represents a period of especially high risk for suicide among adolescents, but has not been matched by proportionate prevention and intervention efforts. Safety planning procedures, especially those which include means restriction counseling and family communication training, may be especially useful for suicidal adolescents and their parents during the discharge process. Brief interventions that actively involve parents in safety planning have the potential to reduce suicide-related outcomes among suicidal adolescents, and thus warrant an increased clinical and research focus.