Organization Profile
Phoenix Children's is one of the nation's largest pediatric health systems. It comprises Phoenix Children's Hospital – Thomas Campus, Phoenix Children's Hospital – Arrowhead Campus, Phoenix Children's Hospital – East Valley, Phoenix Children's – Avondale Campus, four pediatric specialty and urgent care centers, 11 community pediatric practices, 20 outpatient clinics, two ambulatory surgery centers, and seven community-service outpatient clinics throughout the state of Arizona. The system provides world-class inpatient, outpatient, trauma, emergency, and urgent care and has been serving children and families for more than 40 years. Phoenix Children's Care Network includes more than 1,405 pediatric primary care providers and specialists who deliver care across more than 75 subspecialties.
Zero Suicide Implementation Summary
A growing mental health crisis, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, was taking a devastating toll on children and families in Arizona. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that suicide is the second-leading cause of death for Arizona children and young adults ages 10-24. At Phoenix Children's, the stark impact of this crisis has been evident in the emergency department, where providers treat as many as 20 children a day for suicidal ideation, self-harm, or while awaiting placement at an inpatient behavioral health facility.
Phoenix Children's is working urgently to put safeguards in place for young people in the community—long before they end up in the ER. In addition to being selected to participate in Cardinal Health Foundation’s Preventing Youth Suicide Collaborative, in partnership with the Children’s Hospital Association and Zero Suicide Institute, Phoenix Children's also launched the Suicide Prevention Program, which screens children for suicide risk and quickly intervenes with evidence-based treatments.
A key component of this program is a suicide-specific screening survey administered, with parental consent, to children who visit a Phoenix Children's clinic for any reason, such as a well-child exam or a sports medicine appointment. Responses revealing mental or emotional distress prompt an immediate response from a mental health therapist with the Suicide Prevention team. A visit is scheduled the same day to evaluate the child’s mental state, ensure their safety, and determine appropriate next steps. Amazon Echo Show devices are used in every clinic room to make therapists and other specialists readily available to patients. The goal is to help children receive treatment quickly and avoid hospitalizations. The screening tool is now in operation across all clinics throughout the health system and is part of a larger effort to address the mental health needs of Arizona children.
Key Outcomes and Data
Collaborative Assessment & Management of Suicidality (CAMS) is evidence-based training in how to approach treating individuals suffering from serious thoughts of self-harm. Therapists at Phoenix Children's apply their CAMS training daily. To date, 39 mental health therapists and psychologists in the health system have been trained in CAMS. An additional 20 therapists are currently undergoing CAMS training this quarter.
Since launching a pilot program in one ambulatory clinic in March 2023, the Suicide Prevention Program has been expanded to all clinics throughout the health system. To date, more than 48,000 screenings have been distributed, and of the patients who completed their screenings:
- 35 total patients were identified as positive acute and were offered immediate support and care.
- 5% were identified as positive non-acute, and same-day follow-up care with a mental health therapist was provided. This has equated to more than 1,000 patient visits with our program’s mental health therapists.
Therapists assist patients with safety plans and help identify appropriate resources and follow-up care. Sometimes safety plans include securing potentially harmful items in the home. More than 130 families have been supported by the distribution of lock boxes, medication disposal bags, gun locks, and sharps disposal containers.
Next Steps
Phoenix Children's is developing learning modules to expand staff education and comfortability in interacting with patients before and after their screening—including those who screen positive for suicidal ideation. The organization will continue to build its team of mental health therapists and refine the screening survey to increase completion rates.