27

During this session of Zero Suicide we will explore Caring Contacts. Marlyn Scholl from the VAs Suicide Prevention Taskforce will be focusing on Caring Contacts and how a caring contract model might look within individual health care organizations. Caring Contacts are brief communications with patients during care transitions such as discharge from treatment or when patients miss appointments or drop out of treatment. These contacts, through which care providers continue to show support for a patient, can promote a patient’s feeling of connection to treatment and increase his or her participation in collaborative treatment. Caring contacts may be especially helpful for patients who have barriers to outpatient care or are unwilling to access this care.