ED recommendations for suicide prevention in adults: The ICAR²E mnemonic and a systematic review of the literature

Introduction: Caring for suicidal patients can be challenging, especially in emergency departments without easy access to mental health specialists. The American College of Emergency Physicians and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention appointed a working group to create an easy-to-use suicide prevention tool for ED providers.

Methods: The writing group created an easy-to-use mnemonic for the care of adult patients as a way of organizing sequential steps, accompanied by a systematic review of available ED-based suicide prevention literature. The systematic review was performed both to ensure that all relevant evidence was taken into account as well as to evaluate the strength of evidence for each recommendation. Levels of evidence were assigned utilizing the ACEP level of evidence classification.

Results: The writing group created the mnemonic ICAR²E, which stands for Identify suicide risk; Communicate; Assess for life threats and ensure safety; Risk assessment (of suicide); Reduce the risk (of suicide); and Extend care beyond the ED. 31 articles were identified in the search, and were included in the systematic review.

Conclusions: The ICAR²E mnemonic may be a feasible way for practicing ED clinicians to provide evidence-based care to suicidal patients. However, further research is needed.