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The following is a summary of “Psychological therapy for the prevention of suicide in prison: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial,” published in the December 2024 issue of Psychiatry by Pratt et al.
Suicide is a leading cause of preventable death in prisons, with rates significantly higher than in the community. Psychological therapies could effectively reduce suicidal thoughts and behaviors, but access to such interventions in prisons is limited.
Researchers conducted a study to assess the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a new psychological therapy for male prisoners at risk of suicide.
They conducted a 2-armed, single-blind, pragmatic, randomized controlled trial with 360 male prisoners at risk of suicide across 4 prisons in Northern England. Participants were randomized to receive either cognitive behavioral suicide prevention (CBSP) plus treatment as usual or treatment as usual alone. Co-primary outcomes, including suicide ideation and suicide behaviors, were assessed at baseline and 6-month follow-up. An intention-to-treat analysis was performed, with stratification based on prison site and lifetime suicide attempt history. A nested qualitative evaluation examined the implementation context, focusing on facilitators and barriers.
Investigators determined that the psychological therapy for suicidal prisoners was clinically and cost-effective. They also developed a project implementation platform to guide the broader implementation of the intervention across prisons.
Source: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-024-06320-y#Abs1
