Wednesday, January 15, 2025
1/15/2025
Wellstar Health System (Wellstar) will implement Zero Suicide at Wellstar: Expanding Access, Delivering Care, Saving Lives (ZSW), serving a focus population of 2,870,557 Georgia adults ages who reside in Bartow, Cherokee, Cobb, Douglas, Forsyth, Fulton, Harris, Paulding, Polk, and Troupe counties, comprising 48% male, 52% female, and a racially and culturally diverse population (see below). Services will be delivered across a multi-county geographic catchment area in six Wellstar hospital and emergency departments, including suicide prevention organizational change, identification, treatment, care transitions, workforce training, and quality improvement. Wellstar proposes to provide direct suicide-specific services (including but not limited to screening, assessment, treatment, and care transitions) to at least 5,000 adults across the catchment area. Despite successes of Wellstar’s implementation of the Zero Suicide model across its health system to date, the catchment area remains subject to significant behavioral health disparities, including care specifically for persons at risk for suicide. Behavioral health, primary care, and emergency care (i.e., ambulatory services, first responders, etc.) providers lack a statewide surveillance and referral system that could promote timely, continuous care in their communities. Comprehensive screening, assessment, care planning and management, and treatment are all critical components of effective and evidence-based suicide prevention, but are often conducted (when they are conducted) by service providers who work in different health systems without efficient or effective strategies for sharing suicide-specific patient information; leading to patients who “fall through the cracks” of the overall healthcare system. Further, needs exist in the development of a competent and caring workforce who are trained in evidence-based suicide prevention strategies that align with their job roles, qualifications, and personal needs (i.e., vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, moral injury). Purpose: To reduce suicide attempt and suicide death rates among adult Georgians ages 18 and older by building on the existing Wellstar Zero Suicide Initiative’s community suicide prevention strategies, including upstream community-based and downstream treatment-focused strategies, to enhance/expand health system wide and community collaborations, training, and service provision. Goal 1: Lead a system-wide culture change committed to reducing suicides through the convening of a Zero Suicide Oversight Steering Council that will oversee the development, implementation, and quality improvement of the Zero Suicide program. Goal 2: Enhance/Expand provision of evidence-based suicide risk screening and assessment across the Wellstar Health System. Goal 3: Enhance/expand provision of treatment upon intake and rapid follow up after discharge from emergency departments (EDs) and inpatient psychiatric units for focus region adults in who have experienced a suicidal crisis and/or attempt. Goal 4: Provide follow up and care transition/coordination for high risk adults who have experienced a suicide crisis/attempt (including those with SMI). Goal 5: Enhanced/expand training to clinical and non-clinical team members serving at-risk adults in topics including assessment of suicide risk/protective factors, evidence-based/best practice implementation (e.g., QPR, CALM, CT-SP, CAMS, C-SSRS, RRSR, MHFA), suicide risk treatment, and follow-up to ensure care continuity. Goal 6: Implement Goals 8 and 9 of the 2012 National Suicide Prevention Strategy to reduce rates of suicide attempts and deaths among Georgia adults ages 18-64. Goal 7: Conduct a comprehensive evaluation and develop/disseminate a thoroughly documented service model for replication/adoption across the state and nation.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).