Over the last two decades, suicide-related deaths in the U.S. have generally increased each year, and young adults (those ages 18-25) are especially vulnerable. Young adults are the age group with the greatest prevalence of suicidal ideation as well as past-year suicide attempts. Suicide-specific interventions such as safety planning, cognitive behavior therapy for suicide prevention (CBT-SP), and among others, the collaborative assessment and management of suicide (CAMS) can be effective at reducing suicidal ideation, behavior and hospitalization. However, many young adults are not interested in, or cannot access, traditional forms of treatment, which limits the number who will receive in-person suicide care. Digital mental health interventions can be used to reach and engage individuals who are unable to, or uninterested in, receiving traditional in-person mental health services. Fortunately, young adults appear to be interested in using self-directed digital technologies to help manage their mental health symptoms and thus, digital mental health interventions may help close the treatment gap. This presentation will review the safety, acceptability, and emerging efficacy and effectiveness of existing digital mental health interventions for suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Additionally, this presentation will review the dissemination and implementation of these tools in different settings across the country.

Format

Recorded webinar, non-interactive, self-paced distance learning activity with post-test.

This presentation was recorded on August 18, 2021.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the rates of suicidal ideation and intentions in different subpopulations within the United States. 
• Assess challenges to current suicide-specific care delivery models and opportunities and challenges of digital mental health tools to address this treatment gap.  
• Incorporate the use of digital mental health tools for the treatment of suicidal ideation and prevention of suicide. 
• Evaluate the strengths and limitations of different types of digital mental health interventions for addressing suicidal thoughts and behaviors. 

Target Audience

Psychiatrist, Psychologist, Physician (non-psychiatrist), Physician Assistant , Other mental health professionals  

Instructional Level

Intermediate    

Estimate Time to Complete

Estimated Duration: 1.0 hour
Program Start Date: August 31, 2021 
Program End Date: August 31, 2024

How to Earn Credit

Participants who wish to earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ or a certificate of participation may do so by viewing the live presentation and completing the evaluation. After evaluating the program, course participants will be provided with an opportunity to claim hours of participation and print an official CME certificate (physicians) or certificate of participation (other disciplines) showing the event date and hours earned. 

Continuing Education Credit

Physicians

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The APA designates this live event for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 

Faculty and Planner Disclosures

All financial relationships relevant to this activity have been mitigated. 

Instructor

• Emily Lattie, PhD, received a PhD in clinical psychology with a specialization in health psychology from the University of Miami. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Medical Social Sciences and the Associate Director of Training for the Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Her early research was in chronic illness, focusing both on biobehavioral processes and remote delivery of care for populations with access barriers. Dr. Lattie’s current work focuses on the development and evaluation of technology-enabled mental health services for depression and anxiety delivered via mobile app or website. She is particularly interested in adapting these services to subpopulations with access barriers, and in examining the contexts, including school and healthcare settings, in which these programs can be implemented. 
• Jonah Meyerhoff, PhD, is a NIMH-funded T32 postdoctoral research fellow in the Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies (CBITs) at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Dr. Meyerhoff’s research focuses on integrating prevention science, novel data collection methods, as well as developing and testing technology-based interventions for affective disorders. He has a specific interest in primary prevention of suicide through thoughtfully-designed technology-based tools. Dr. Meyerhoff has a background in suicide prevention, culturally-responsive risk assessment, and cognitive behavioral interventions for recurrent depressive disorders. He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Vermont and completed his clinical internship at the University of Rochester School of Medicine. 

Planners

• John Torous, MD, American Psychiatric Association. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests. 

Accessibility for Participants with Disabilities

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Technical Requirements

This internet-based CME activity is best experienced using any of the following:

• The latest and 2nd latest public versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari
• Internet Explorer 11+

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Optimal System Configuration:

• Browser: Google Chrome (latest and 2nd latest version), Safari (latest and 2nd latest version), Internet Explorer 11.0+, Firefox (latest and 2nd latest version), or Microsoft Edge (latest and 2nd latest version)
• Operating System: Windows versions 8.1+, Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) +, Android (latest and 2nd latest version), or iOS/iPad OS (latest and 2nd latest version)
• Internet Connection: 1 Mbps or higher

Minimum Requirements:

• Windows PC: Windows 8.1 or higher; 1 GB (for 32-bit)/2 GB (for 64-bit) or higher RAM; Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content
• Macintosh: Mac OS X 10.5 or higher with latest updates installed; Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (867MHz or faster) processor; 512 MB or higher RAM; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content

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