Adapting the zero suicide framework to the adult emergency department setting: Strategies for nurse leaders

Abstract

The ED has been increasingly recognized as a key setting for suicide prevention. Zero Suicide (ZS) is an aspirational goal to eliminate suicide for all patients within a health care system through utilization of best practices. However, there has been limited exploration of ZS implementation within the ED. As ED nurses play an important role in suicide prevention through their close contact with patients at risk for suicide, ZS implementation would benefit from tailored strategies for ED nurse leadership. We describe the ZS framework and provides strategies for nurse leaders to adapt each ZS component in the adult ED.