Teaching pediatric residents to assess adolescent suicide risk with a standardized patient module.
OBJECTIVE
We hypothesized that a suicide risk assessment (SRA) training module incorporating standardized patients (SPs) would enhance pediatric resident SRA performance.


METHODS
We conducted an educational survey of pediatric residents regarding SRA (N = 80). In addition, we tested the performance of a SRA training module among pediatric interns who received SRA practice with SPs simulating suicidality scenarios, with (n = 6) or without (n = 6) SRA lecture, or SRA lecture only (n = 12) and control interns (n = 10). We examined postintervention confidence in SRA and self-reported and objectively measured knowledge of suicidal risk factors.


RESULTS
Resident confidence and knowledge regarding SRA were low, compared with assessment of medical illness. Interns in the SP plus lecture group had significantly greater confidence in screening adolescents for suicide risk factors and assessing suicidal adolescents (screening, 4.2 +/- 0.4; assessing, 4.2 +/- 0.4), compared with subjects in either the lecture-only (screening, 2.9 +/- 0.8; P = .005; assessing, 2.9 +/- 1.1; P = .01) or control (screening, 3.1 +/- 0.7; P = .025; assessing, 2.6 +/- 0.8; P = .003) group. In addition, only the SP plus lecture group demonstrated significantly greater objective knowledge of suicide risk factors (92% vs 25% correct; P = .008) than the control group. Neither the lecture-only group nor the SP-only group was significantly better than the control group in terms of knowledge or confidence relevant to SRA.


CONCLUSIONS
This SRA training module was significantly more effective than lecture alone in enhancing pediatric intern knowledge and confidence in SRA.
Fallucco
Elise M
EM
Washington University, School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, St Louis, MO 63110, USA. fallucce@psychiatry.wustl.edu
Hanson
Mark D
MD
Glowinski
Anne L
AL
D000293:Adolescent; D000296:Adolescent Psychiatry / Q000193:education; D002321:Career Choice; D002648:Child; D002665:Child Psychiatry / Q000193:education; D003479:Curriculum; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D016544:Patient Simulation; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000193:education*; D010552:Personality Assessment; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology; D000092864:Suicide Prevention