# Improving Sleep as a Strategy to Reduce Suicide Risk Among at-Risk Veterans: A Real World Clinical Trial

> **NIH VA I01** · SYRACUSE VA  MEDICAL CENTER · 2022 · —

## Abstract

Anticipated Benefit to VA Healthcare
The proposed study will establish the feasibility and effectiveness of treating insomnia in the primary care
environment as a suicide prevention strategy. By treating insomnia, a common problem that is both a risk
factor for suicide and highly prevalent in common conditions associated with suicide such as depression and
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), we expect to reduce the severity of suicidal ideation (SI) among
Veterans experiencing SI, insomnia and a co-occurring condition.
Project Background
Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the U.S., is a major concern of the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA), and occurs at elevated rates among Veterans. Veterans with common chronic conditions such as
PTSD and depression are at increased risk for suicide. Although evidence-based treatments exist for these
conditions, a significant number of Veterans do not engage in or complete such treatments leaving them at
higher risk for suicide.
This application builds upon VA HSR&D funded pilot work that demonstrated the feasibility of delivering a brief
version of cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) within primary care to Veterans experiencing SI.
The pilot data suggest that our brief, primary-care based insomnia treatment was delivered with high fidelity,
acceptable to Veterans and associated with significant reductions in insomnia and depression symptoms, and
reduced SI intensity. The next stage of this program of research is to establish the feasibility of delivering our
brief, primary care based, insomnia intervention utilizing primary care-mental health integration (PC-MHI)
clinicians (as opposed to research staff) and to establish the effectiveness of the intervention on reducing the
severity of factors that contribute to suicide risk and to improve other clinical markers in a definitive trial.
Project Objectives
The ultimate goal of the broader program of research is to reduce suicide among Veterans by intervening upon
sleep disturbance as a modifiable risk factor for suicide. In this application we focus on insomnia, which is the
most common sleep disorder among Veterans and is robustly associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
The primary objective of this proposed clinical trial is to test whether (and how) using brief behavioral insomnia
treatment can not only improve sleep, but reduce other risk factors for suicide including the severity of
depression, PTSD and suicidal ideation among Veterans at risk for suicide. Secondary objectives are to: (1)
gather initial data on barriers and facilitators to implementation to aid future implementation efforts in VA
primary care and (2) determine if the intervention improves attitudes towards psychotherapy treatments that
address the co-morbid conditions.
Project Methods
In order to achieve these objectives we will conduct a real-world, randomized clinical trial among 240 Veterans
experiencing either co-occurring depression or PTSD recrui...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10125819
- **Project number:** 5I01HX002183-03
- **Recipient organization:** SYRACUSE VA  MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Jennifer S Funderburk
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-01-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10125819

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10125819, Improving Sleep as a Strategy to Reduce Suicide Risk Among at-Risk Veterans: A Real World Clinical Trial (5I01HX002183-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10125819. Licensed CC0.

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