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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: AJPH.2007.127928v1 99/2/334    most recent Submit a response View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Scott, M. A. Articles by Shaffer, D. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Scott, M. A. Articles by Shaffer, D. Related Collections Adolescent Health School Health Screening

Michelle A. Scott, PhD, MSW, Holly C. Wilcox, PhD, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, PhD, MPH, Mark Davies, MPH, Roger C. Hicks, MBA, J. Blake Turner, PhD and David Shaffer, MD

At the time of the study, Michelle A. Scott, Mark Davies, Roger C. Hicks, J. Blake Turner, and David Shaffer were with the Department of Child Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY. Holly C. Wilcox is with the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. Irvin Sam Schonfeld is with the Department of Psychology, City College of the City University of New York, and the Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Michelle A. Scott, PhD, MSW, Department of Child Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University, 1051 Riverside Dr, Unit 78, New York, NY 10032 (e-mail: scottm{at}childpsych.columbia.edu).

Objectives. We sought to determine the degree of overlap between students identified through school-based suicide screening and those thought to be at risk by school administrative and clinical professionals.

Methods. Students from 7 high schools in the New York metropolitan area completed the Columbia Suicide Screen; 489 of the 1729 students screened had positive results. The clinical status of 641 students (73% of those who had screened positive and 23% of those who had screened negative) was assessed with modules from the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children. School professionals nominated by their principal and unaware of students' screening and diagnostic status were asked to indicate whether they were concerned about the emotional well-being of each participating student.

Results. Approximately 34% of students with significant mental health problems were identified only through screening, 13.0% were identified only by school professionals, 34.9% were identified both through screening and by school professionals, and 18.3% were identified neither through screening nor by school professionals. The corresponding percentages among students without mental health problems were 9.1%, 24.0%, 5.5%, and 61.3%.

Conclusions. School-based screening can identify suicidal and emotionally troubled students not recognized by school professionals.