The practice of lethal means restriction counseling in US emergency departments to reduce suicide risk: a systematic review of the literature

BACKGROUND: Suicide is a leading cause of death in the US. Lethal means restriction (LMR), which encourages limiting access and reducing the lethality of particular methods of suicide, has been identified as a viable prevention strategy. For this approach to be successful, adequate education about risks and means must be communicated to families and individuals at risk for suicide. This systematic review aims to identify LMR methods most commonly communicated by healthcare providers in the emergency department, and barriers to the delivery of such counseling. METHODS: The protocol for this systematic review is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42018076734). Included studies were identified through searching four databases (PubMed, Scopus, PsycInfo, and EBSCO). Studies were selected and coded independently by two researchers using the PICOS framework. Included studies examined LMR counseling delivered in the ED regardless of patient age, sex or race/ethnicity. RESULTS: A total of 1282 studies were screened; 9 met the inclusion criteria. Included studies were published from 1998 to 2020. Study participants were majority female, and safe firearm storage was the most common form of LMR counseling provided. Eight studies included counseling on multiple forms of lethal means, [e.g., alcohol, medication, and firearm storage] and one study focused solely on safe firearm storage. Two studies reported barriers limiting healthcare providers’ delivery of LMR counseling, including lack of specialized skills and skepticism regarding the effectiveness of LMR counseling. CONCLUSION: There is limited published evidence that identifies the most effective methods and target populations for LMR counseling. Given the growing literature that provides evidence of gender differences in suicide modality (e.g., guns, medications, suffocation), LMR counseling should be multifaceted, to address common means of suicide in both men and women. Despite evidence that the majority of suicide attempts and half of completed suicides do not involve firearms, results showed that LMR counseling is frequently focused on promoting the safe storage of firearms. This highlights the need to include counseling focused on a variety of lethal means to reduce risk of suicide completion. Prospective studies should also aim to identify the most efficacious methods of delivering LMR counseling in the clinical settings.