Suicide Prevention

Suicide Prevention

Veterans are twice as likely as non-Veterans to die by suicide, a contrast even more pronounced in rural settings. Suicide and suicidal ideation (thinking about or planning to end one’s life) can have lasting harmful effects on families and communities.

HSR’s suicide prevention research seeks to understand and reduce factors that increase the risk of Veteran suicide, and to promote resilience among Veterans. Investigators explore the effectiveness of screening, diagnostic, and treatment approaches, and the effects of these innovations on VA policy and clinical practice. Other areas of research focus include high-risk transition periods, firearm and other lethal means safety, and care coordination between VA and non-VA settings.

Each section below is populated by a search of the HSR website. Search results are generated based on the search term "Suicide" . Results are updated as new data are available.

Citations

(recent SUICIDE publications)

Kertesz SG, Varley AL, Hoge AE, Joiner TE, Darnall BD, Nicholson KM, Fuqua LA, Gilmore MF, Riggs KR, Gamble SA, Gordon AJ, Dwivedi Y, Flower M, Veasley CS, Patton CS, Leal AS, Gibson DM, Elliott JE, McCullough MB. Protocol for research examination of individual suicides occurring in chronic pain: A qualitative approach to psychological autopsy methodology. PLoS ONE. 2025 Nov 14; 20(11):e0329874, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0329874.
Sadler AG, Mengeling MA, Cook BL, Torner JC, Vander Weg M, Hamilton AB, Platt J, Heeren A, Fuhrmeister L, Smith JL. Development of a Patient Decision Aid to Prevent Firearm Suicide Among US Women Reserve and National Guard Veterans. Journal of general internal medicine. 2025 Nov 13 DOI: 10.1007/s11606-025-09942-4.
Harris AHS, Finlay AK, Meerwijk EL. Evaluating the accuracy of the Veterans Health Administration's REACH VET suicide prediction model for legal involved veterans. Npj mental health research. 2025 Oct 18; 4(1):53, DOI: 10.1038/s44184-025-00167-1.
Vashi AA, Bozkurt S, Urech T, Wu S, Asch SM, Tran LD. Persistent Emergency Department Use Among Veterans: Longitudinal Patterns and Opportunities for Targeted Intervention. Military medicine. 2025 Oct 7 DOI: 10.1093/milmed/usaf479.
Chen JA, Devendorf AR, du Pont A, Epler E, Pruitt LD, Markman J, Reger MA. Provider perspectives on care for veterans with electronic health record flags for high suicide risk: A mixed methods study. Psychological Services. 2025 Oct 6 DOI: 10.1037/ser0000995.

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Publication Briefs

(recent SUICIDE Publication Briefs )

Offering Lethal Means Safety Interventions to Veterans Crisis Line Callers Associated with Reduced Risk of Emergency Dispatch
This study aimed to assess the acceptability of offering lethal means safety (LMS) interventions (i.e., gun locks and medication take-back envelopes) to Veteran callers to the Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) who were at risk of suicide and eligible for LMS counseling, and to examine call outcomes, healthcare use, and mortality associated with acceptance of the intervention. Findings showed that, compar...
Date: September 1, 2025
Moral Injury is Independently—and Significantly—Associated with Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors Among Veterans
Using the Moral Injury and Distress Scale (MIDS), this study investigated the connection between moral injury—the distressing psychological, behavioral, social, and sometimes spiritual aftermath of witnessing, failing to prevent, or participating in events that contradict one’s values and beliefs—and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Findings showed that overall, 6% of the sample screened positive ...
Date: August 1, 2025
Younger Veterans with Mental Health Conditions, and Older Veterans with Physical Health Conditions, at High Risk of Suicide Attempt or Self-Directed Violence After COVID-19 Infection
In this study, researchers used the electronic health records of Veterans with a first case of COVID-19 infection between May 1, 2021, and April 30, 2022, to identify subgroups of Veterans with high risk of post-COVID-19 suicide attempts or other self-directed violence (SDV). Findings showed that within 12 months after infection, 2,106 Veterans had suicide attempts or other SDV events (74 per 10,0...
Date: March 4, 2025
Virtual Mental Health Services Reduce Suicide-Related Events Among Veterans
This study evaluated whether virtual mental health service use affects the risk of individual-level suicide-related events (SREs). Findings showed that a 1% increase in the percentage of virtual mental health visits relative to total visits was associated with a nearly 3% decrease in SREs among Veterans. In this sample, virtual mental health visits comprised 45% of all mental health visits. Findin...
Date: November 5, 2024
VA’s Telehealth Program for Bipolar Disorders Is Associated with Improved Symptoms, Suicide Risk, Quality of Life, and Prescription Quality
This study examined VA clinical, administrative, and survey data to evaluate outcomes (including symptoms, mood episodes, positive suicide screens, and mental health-related quality of life) for Veterans who were referred to the Bipolar Disorders Telehealth (BDTH) program from 2011 to 2021. Findings showed that Veterans who completed the program reported reductions in manic and depressive symptoms...
Date: October 18, 2024

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Studies

(recent SUICIDE projects )

Project No.	Title	PI	Funding End
CDA 23-054	Recovery-oriented group therapy for Veteran men with military sexual trauma	Yahalom, Jonathan	2029-12-31
CDA 22-197	VA''s virtual care initiatives and suicide prevention	Gujral, Kritee	2029-09-30
IIR 23-027	Preventing Loss of Independence through Exercise in Community Living Centers: An Effectiveness-Implementation Trial	Nicosia, Francesca	2029-06-30
SDR 23-115	A Hybrid Effectiveness-Implementation Study of the Pride in All Who Served Program	Hilgeman, Michelle	2029-06-30
SDR 21-267	Virtual Hope Box Enhanced Facilitation in High-Risk Suicidal Veterans	Bagge, Courtney	2029-05-31

» View more Studies

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HSR Briefs, Reports, Newsletters

Systematic Review - Virtual Reality for Treating Mental Health Disorders and Prevention of Suicide (12-10-2025)

Rural Veterans’ Thoughts on High Suicide Rates in Their Communities—and on What to Do About It (07-01-2025)

FORUM (01-03-2024)

HSR&D Research on Suicide Prevention (09-01-2023)

Evidence Compendium - Selective and Indicated Interventions for Suicide Prevention (07-12-2022)

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Cyberseminars The most recent "Suicide" seminars are displayed.
Date	Title	Presenter(s)
12/4/2024	Suicide Prevention 2.0 (SP 2.0) Clinical Telehealth Program	Walker, Jessica A. Stacy, Meaghan
9/4/2024	Development and Advancement of Predictive Modeling to Support Suicide and Overdose Prevention	McCarthy, John Kazanis, William Trafton, Jodie
6/5/2024	Identifying Genes and Molecular Pathways Underlying Suicidal Behavior	Roussos, Panagiotis (Panos)
3/12/2024	Suicide Mortality in Vietnam War-Era Veterans: 41 Years of Follow Up	Schneiderman, Aaron Weitlauf, Julie
3/6/2024	VA/STARRS-LS Researcher-in-Residence program: Updates from two suicide prevention projects	Edwards, Emily Houtsma, Claire
» View more Cyberseminars

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Videos

Peer Support to Engage Minority Veterans in VA Mental Health Care 09/18/23
Suicide Prevention and Implementation 01/29/20
Primary Care and Mental Health Integration 01/09/20
Sleep Disorder Treatment to Prevent Veteran Suicide 12/22/17

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Podcasts

Veterans' Perspectives on VA's Risk ID Suicide Prevention Screening Program 12/04/2023
Evaluating the Transitioning Servicemember Support Program 12/09/2021
The Impact of COVID-19, Social Distancing, and Mental Health 11/10/2021
A Community Network Approach to Supporting Veterans at Risk for Suicide 07/13/2020
Research Into Gulf War Illness 06/23/2020
Post-Incarceration Outcomes for Veterans with Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Challenges 06/09/2020
Engaging Rural Dwelling Veterans in VA Mental Health Treatment 05/26/2020
Moral Reconation Therapy for Justice-Involved Veterans 05/11/2020
Understanding Who's at Risk for Food Insecurity 04/14/2020

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Other Resources

Visit the website of the VA-funded Suicide Prevention Research Impact Network to learn more about their research priorities, planning awards, and access various resources.
Visit the website of the Military Suicide Research Consortium.
Visit the VA Office of Mental Health’s suicide prevention topic

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Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.

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