Assessment and care of individuals at risk of suicide in Emergency Department: The SecUrgence protocol.

Almost half (48,5%) of all individuals who die by suicide visited the Emergency Department (ED) in the year preceding their death by suicide and for almost a third (29,5%) of these individuals, the ED visit occurred within the month preceding their death by suicide. The ED is a key location for suicide prevention. The aim of this study was to develop and reach a consensus on the SecUrgence Protocol, a clinical protocol that intends to assess and provide care for individuals at risk of suicide that present themselves to the ED. This project was conducted in 3 stages: 1) Review of the literature, 2) Development of the list of the protocol statements by a first panel of experts, and 3) Validation, using the Delphi consensus method, on the final statements to include in the SecUrgence Protocol by a second panel of experts. Two rounds of the Delphi questionnaire were conducted until a final consensus of over 75% was reached. The SecUrgence Protocol is a first scientific step towards improving suicide prevention in the ED in Quebec as it was validated by a rigorous research process that included a consensus by all key stakeholders.