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Primary Submission Category: Interventions/Programs
Implementation of a Bridge Support Program for Suicidal Youth
Authors: Kayla Fennelly, Rachel Massar, Anne Buchanan, Jennifer Agostino, Nitin Toteja, Carolyn Berry,
Presenting Author: Kayla Fennelly*
In 2024, New York City Health + Hospitals (H+H), the largest urban safety-net system in the US, launched the Caring Transitions Program (CTP) in partnership with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to serve youth who present to the Emergency Department (ED) with serious suicidal behavior or a suicide attempt and their families. Located in 2 boroughs (Bronx and Queens) and serving 5 ED’s, the CTP provides support and connections to outpatient care for youth and their families in the 90 days following a suicide attempt or serious suicide-related behavior. The CTP team includes Peer and Family Advocates with lived experience who work closely with youth participants and their caregivers, as well as Transition Coordinators and Social Workers. As part of a rigorous mixed-methods evaluation, the NYU Grossman School of Medicine study team conducted 30 key informant interviews between July 2025-January 2026 with program staff and mental health/ED providers to help understand barriers and facilitators to successful program implementation. Overall, the program successfully launched at all 5 sites, with one notable challenge being administrative barriers to filling the Family Advocate role in the Bronx. Other challenges include scarcity of available space in which to privately see patients, difficulty meeting patients in person across multiple H+H facilities, appropriate supervision structure for peer advocates, and early communication challenges with outpatient psychiatric providers. Facilitators to implementation include clear understanding of program goals amongst CTP staff and ED staff and providers, successful integration of a program referral pathway into the electronic health record, and clear leadership and oversight from H+H Central Office staff. These findings will inform future program expansion at H+H as well as other hospital systems seeking to implement similar bridge programming for this highly vulnerable population.