Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36809171›Full record

ArticleJMIR research protocols2023

Using a Safety Planning Mobile App to Address Suicidality in Young People Attending Community Mental Health Services in Ireland: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

Ruth Melia, Kady Francis, Jim Duggan, John Bogue, Mary O'Sullivan, Karen Young, Derek Chambers, Shane J McInerney, Edmond O'Dea, Rebecca Bernert

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JMIR research protocols, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
2.2field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Safety Planning for Youth in the Emergency Department Who Have Suicide Risk.Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians open · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.

Ruth MeliaDepartment of Psychology, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1152-5510
Kady FrancisSchool of Psychology, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8161-4546
Jim DugganInsight Centre for Data Analytics, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7507-8617
John BogueSchool of Psychology, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7070-1561
Mary O'SullivanHealth Service Executive Community Healthcare West, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0832-6921
Karen YoungCollege of Engineering and Informatics, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9452-2293
Derek ChambersHealth Service Executive, Dublin, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7670-3058
Shane J McInerneyHealth Service Executive Community Healthcare West, Galway, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1062-6464
Edmond O'DeaDepartment of Psychology, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2402-4093
Rebecca BernertDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, United States.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1677-6749
Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway · IEHealth Service Executive · IEStanford University · USUniversity of Limerick · IE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOver 700,000 people die by suicide annually, making it the fourth leading cause of death among those aged 15-29 years globally. Safety planning is recommended best practice when individuals at risk of suicide present to health services. A safety plan, developed in collaboration with a health care practitioner, details the steps to be taken in an emotional crisis. SafePlan, a safety planning mobile app, was designed to support young people experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors and to record their plan in a way that is accessible immediately and in situ.

objectiveThe aim of this study is to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the SafePlan mobile app for patients experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors and their clinicians within Irish community mental health services, examine the feasibility of study procedures for both patients and clinicians, and determine if the SafePlan condition yields superior outcomes when compared with the control condition.

methodsA total of 80 participants aged 16-35 years accessing Irish mental health services will be randomized (1:1) to receive the SafePlan app plus treatment as usual or treatment as usual plus a paper-based safety plan. The feasibility and acceptability of the SafePlan app and study procedures will be evaluated using both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The primary outcomes are feasibility outcomes and include the acceptability of the app to participants and clinicians, the feasibility of delivery in this setting, recruitment, retention, and app use. The feasibility and acceptability of the following measures in a full randomized controlled trial will also be assessed: the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation, Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale, Coping Self-Efficacy Scale, Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire, and Client Service Receipt Inventory. A repeated measures design with outcome data collected at baseline, post intervention (8 weeks), and at 6-month follow-up will be used to compare changes in suicidal ideation for the intervention condition relative to the waitlist control condition. A cost-outcome description will also be undertaken. Thematic analyses will be used to analyze the qualitative data gathered through semistructured interviews with patients and clinicians.

resultsAs of January 2023, funding and ethics approval have been acquired, and clinician champions across mental health service sites have been established. Data collection is expected to commence by April 2023. The submission of completed manuscript is expected by April 2025.

conclusionsThe framework for Decision-making after Pilot and feasibility Trials will inform the decision to progress to a full trial. The results will inform patients, researchers, clinicians, and health services of the feasibility and acceptability of the SafePlan app in community mental health services. The findings will have implications for further research and policy regarding the broader integration of safety planning apps.

trial registrationOSF Registries osf.io/3y54m; https://osf.io/3y54m. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/44205.

Indexed as

mHealthmobile healthmobile phoneSafePlansafety planningsuicide prevention

Identifiers

PMID36809171
PMCPMC9993232
OpenAlexW4313907490

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.