State of Oklahoma Selects ERT's Suicide Risk Assessment System

The State of Oklahoma, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) will be implementing ERT's AVERT™ Suicide Risk Assessment (SRA) system as a key component in its development of a public health infrastructure that facilitates suicide prevention.

ODMHSAS has adopted the “Zero Suicides” approach endorsed by the Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention (www.zerosuicides.org), and has committed to having mental health patients proactively assessed for suicide risk. They have chosen the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) for this task. AVERT has been used over 160,000 times to assess over 35,000 patients, and has shown to be a reliable, efficient, and scalable solution for SRA in clinical practice. AVERT electronically administers the assessments in audio or visual formats, enabling patients to comfortably and privately report their suicidal ideation and behaviors (SIB). AVERT will be used to collect the C-SSRS electronically (eC-SSRS) from mental health patients throughout the state.

“We are very pleased to embark on this partnership with ERT as a part of our Zero Suicide Initiative,” said Carrie Slatton-Hodges, Deputy Commissioner of Recovery and Treatment, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. “We anticipate that with our planned spectrum of screening, assessment, and evidence based treatment utilizing the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) framework, many lives will be saved.”