Kids' suicide ER visits jump 74%
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Many emergency rooms receiving young people in need of mental health services lack the resources to provide that care.
Why it matters: About half of suicide-related visits from young people occurred at ERs with fewer annual pediatric visits, where therapists or other mental health care professionals aren't on staff.
- That's according to a new study by doctors at Northwestern and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital.
The big picture: Suicide was the second leading cause of death among 10- to 14-year-olds from 2018 to 2024, according to another study published this month in JAMA Pediatrics.
What they found: Emergency visits by children aged 5 to 17 with suicide-related crises increased by 74% between 2016 and 2022, and all pediatric mental health-related ER visits increased by 24% during that period.
- The most frequent mental health diagnosis groups are suicide or self-injury (24%) and depressive disorders (23%).
By the numbers: About 67% of pediatric suicide-related ER visits were females, with patients aged 15-17 making up more than half of the visits.
- More than 60% of the patients were white, 16% Hispanic and 13% Black.
- More than half of the patients' insurance was through Medicaid.
- While 40% were treated and released, the second-highest outcome was transfer to a long-term hospital.
Between the lines: Youth from racial and ethnic minority communities are experiencing escalating rates of severe mental illness, study co-author and physician Audrey Brewer tells Axios.
- This has been linked to poverty, chronic exposure to racism, stigma related to mental health conditions and trauma related to violence.
- These conditions are compounded by limited access to health care in their communities, leading them to seek treatment at ERs where the interventions are brief, Brewer adds.
What's next: The study recommends expanding access to mental health professionals, either in person or via telehealth, but also arming all ERs with the tools to perform mental health interventions that include:
- Engaging the patient and family in safety and treatment plans,
- Connecting families to ongoing supports, both medical and community-based, and
- Possibly a follow-up phone call or text to reinforce the safety plan.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988. The hotline is open 24/7 365 days a year. Ayuda disponible en español.