NJ Adopts ERT Solution for Suicide Monitoring in Students

ERT, a provider of technology solutions and services that increase the reliability and efficiency of high-quality patient data collection, announced that its electronic Suicide Risk Assessment (SRA) system – AVERT^® – will be implemented by Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care (UBHC) as part of the New Jersey Youth Suicide Prevention Project (NJYSPP).  Beginning this semester, AVERT will be used to identify and routinely assess suicide risk among high school and college students in six targeted NJ counties (Bergen, Camden, Hudson, Passaic, Middlesex and Monmouth). Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15 to 24 year olds in the United States (2012).  Funded by a grant administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the NJYSPP is a comprehensive approach to youth suicide prevention, which provides gatekeepers in the counties with best-practice and evidence-based trainings in suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention at no charge.  By using the AVERT self-assessment system, the NJYSPP’s objective is to help school-based gatekeepers proactively identify at-risk students and more efficiently refer them to trained mental health professionals in their community. Read the full release here.