An Intensive Outpatient Program for Suicidal College Students

• Published in: Journal of American college health Vol. 71; no. 1; pp. 24 - 29
• Main Authors: Salk, Rachel H, Moses-Kolko, Eydie L, Chugani, Carla D, Mastruserio, Susan, Wentroble, Erin, Blackburn, Vint, Poling, Kimberly, Sakolsky, Dara, Brent, David, Goldstein, Tina R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Taylor & Francis 2023; Taylor & Francis Inc
• Subjects: Adolescent; At Risk Persons; At risk populations; Clinical Diagnosis; Clinics; College students; Counseling; Drug Therapy; Drugs; High risk; Humans; Inpatient care; Intensive care; Mental Health; Outpatient treatment; Outpatients; Prevention; Program Effectiveness; Risk assessment; School Health Services; Skill Development; Students - psychology; Suicidal Ideation; Suicide; Traditional medicine; Undergraduate Students; Universities; Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh); Suicide; treatment; undergraduates
• ISSN: 0744-8481; 1940-3208
• DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2021.1879814

Objective: College counseling centers (CCCs) have limited capacity to accommodate high-risk students who need more intensive care than traditional outpatient treatment. We describe an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) to meet the specialized needs of suicidal undergraduates. Participants: Suicidal undergraduates aged 18--24. Methods: Fact-gathering meetings with local universities confirmed high need for prompt access to IOP care for students presenting in crisis at CCCs and emergency rooms, and post-inpatient discharge. We thus iteratively designed and implemented the College Option Services for Teens at Risk (COSTAR) IOP. Results: The 6-week program includes initial diagnostic evaluation and risk assessment followed by weekly skills groups, individual therapy, and medication management. Between September 2017 and January 2020, 148 students (M age = 19.7) attended an average of 5.7 COSTAR group sessions (SD = 4.7). Conclusions: A specialty IOP for suicidal college students holds promise in a stepped care approach for at-risk college students.