Degree Name
Nursing Practice, DNP
Publication Date
9-30-2026
First Advisor
Lisa Drake
Second Advisor
Diane Hare
Abstract
Evidence supports structured suicide-prevention education, but inconsistent pathway use at outpatient intake prompted this quality improvement project to evaluate provider confidence. The aim was increased confidence after training on a Suicide Assessment Five-Step Evaluation and Triage (SAFE-T) guided pathway. Donabedian's structure, process, and outcome model and the Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement change model guided implementation through one Plan, Do, Study, Act cycle. A single-group pre-test and post-test design involved seven clinicians at one hybrid outpatient behavioral health clinic. All available eligible staff (100%) completed a 2.5-hour training and both surveys. The Suicide Risk Assessment Confidence Scale was administered April 20 and June 15–21, 2026. Corrected scoring informed four subscales and a project-defined confidence index, not a validated scale total. Paired-samples t tests, exact Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, and Holm-adjusted subscale comparisons were used. The index mean (M) increased from 3.97 (standard deviation [SD] = 0.97) to 5.34 (SD = 0.77), a gain of 1.37, 95% confidence interval [0.76, 1.98], t(6) = 5.51, p = .0015; the Wilcoxon result was W = 0, p = .016. All seven index scores increased, and all four-subscale group means improved after adjustment. Limitations included the small single-site cohort, self-report, project-specific index, and no control group. For site leadership and nursing, findings support structured education followed by objective practice evaluation. Improved clinical performance and patient outcomes were not established.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Recommended Citation
Baker, Shukairo Mack, "Improving Provider Confidence in Suicide-Risk Screening Through Training on a SAFE-T-Guided Pathway at Intake" (2026). Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects. 396.
https://arch.astate.edu/dnp-projects/396
