Enhancing Parent Support During Emergency Department Visits for Suicidal Adolescents

Abstract

Suicide crisis is a considerable health concern for Australian adolescents. Parents provide suicidal adolescents with support and access to life-saving care, such as the emergency department (ED). The aim of this study was to explore, from a parent perspective, what supports parents had received or would have found helpful when they attended the ED for their adolescents' suicide crisis. A cross-sectional sample of 163 parents who had attended an Australian ED with their adolescent child (aged 12–18 years) completed an online survey, which explored the support participants have received during an ED presentation, what support is important to receive and factors which inform participants' preference for adolescent support. A binary logistic regression was conducted to determine which factors informed the likelihood of parents' preference type (adolescent support over parent support). Parents reported wanting information that would help them to support their adolescent after discharge. Ninety percent of parents indicated that they would prefer receiving adolescent-focused support over parent-focused support, with parents of younger adolescents significantly more likely to endorse wanting adolescent-focused support during the ED presentation. This is the first study that examines the support parents receive from EDs when presenting for a suicide crisis. It demonstrates a large gap between what parents would consider helpful to receive and what support they are receiving in Australian EDs. These findings should be used to help guide ED reform and to develop resources that support parents to care for their adolescent during and immediately following a suicide crisis.