Assessing and Managing Suicide Risk in Autistic Youth: Findings from a Clinician Survey in a Pediatric Psychiatric Emergency Setting.
Emergency clinicians feel unprepared to manage suicide risk in autistic kids—your training materials can fill this gap.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Emerson et al. (2023) asked 112 emergency-department clinicians about suicide risk in autistic youth.
They used an online survey with 20 questions on confidence, training, and care gaps.
All clinicians worked in pediatric psychiatric emergency settings across three hospitals.
What they found
Only a large share felt confident spotting suicide warning signs in autistic kids.
Seventy-one percent said they needed more training on autism-specific risk factors.
Clinicians missed asking about special interests, sensory triggers, and social stressors.
How this fits with other research
Hamama et al. (2021) found similar gaps in healthcare transition—only a large share of providers followed best practices.
Both surveys show clinicians feel lost when autism is involved, whether in the ED or during hand-offs.
García-Villamisar et al. (2017) adds that staff anxiety rises when they face challenging behavior weekly.
Together, these papers paint the same picture: standard training leaves clinicians unprepared for autistic clients.
Why it matters
Your next in-service can plug this hole. Create a one-page autism suicide-risk checklist. Include questions about routine changes, bullying, and sensory overload. Share it with local ED staff. You will boost their confidence and may save a life.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) and emergency department (ED) utilization are prevalent in autistic youth. The current study surveyed clinicians in a pediatric psychiatric ED to examine differences in attitudes on suicide-related care for autistic and non-autistic patient populations. While clinicians rated addressing STB in ASD as important and adaptations to care as necessary, less than half identified ASD as a suicide risk factor and confidence ratings were significantly lower for autistic patients. Previous ASD training predicted confidence and accounted for approximately 25% of the variance in confidence scores. Findings highlight the urgency to develop and disseminate ED clinician training, and address the lack of validated assessment tools, adapted suicide prevention practices, and evidence-based treatments for STB in autistic youth.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2023 · doi:10.1080/13811118.2018.1541034