# SuSt-AInS: Sustainment of suicide prevention programs in American Indian Settings

> **NIH NIH K01** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $49,422

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Suicide is a significant public health problem with rates in the US general population gradually increasing over
time. The burden of suicide is even more pronounced in many American Indian tribes, especially among youth,
with average rates estimated to be about four times higher than the US general population. The effects of
these deaths are felt throughout communities. Programs aimed at preventing suicide are critically important in
these settings and represent one of the top priorities of the National Institute of Mental Health. However, even
when we know prevention programs work, sustaining them and their effects has proved challenging. The
overall goal of this K01 Mentored Research Career Development Award is to broaden the candidate’s
expertise in the science of sustainment. Through coursework, structured mentorship activities and applied
learning, the candidate will develop new competencies in (1) Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) science
with a focus on sustainment; (2) American Indian health research; (3) use of innovative methodologic
approaches, including mixed-methods and systems dynamic approaches; and (4) professional development, to
become an independent NIMH-funded investigator. Drs. Joseph Gallo, Shannon Wiltsey-Stirman, and Allison
Barlow will provide primary mentorship, and are joined by a team of dedicated and interdisciplinary consultant
mentors including Drs. Takeru Igusa, Sonja Schoenwald, Lawrence Palinkas, Lindsey Zimmerman and Teresa
Brockie. The research will be conducted by leveraging the NIMH U19 Southwest Suicide Prevention Hub. The
candidate will combine mixed-methods and systems dynamic science, to innovatively identify, prioritize and
ultimately, test strategies to enhance sustainment of the Celebrating Life youth suicide prevention program as
it is disseminated to other tribal contexts. Locally, this research will help our community partners to devise
solutions for sustaining effective suicide prevention programs in their settings. More broadly, this study
addresses a critical gap in research on sustainment in the Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) science
field, and focuses on populations from low-resource and underrepresented groups, representing one of the
core values of D&I science.!Results from this study will inform development of an R01 proposal focused on
testing systems dynamic approaches as sustainment strategies in an appropriately powered implementation
trial. The study goals advance NIMH strategic objective #4 strengthening the public health impact of NIMH
supported research by developing and validating “strategies for implementing, sustaining and continuously
improving evidence-based practices” (4.2a) and is consistent with NIH’s Priorities for D&I science, focusing on
“research testing approaches to scaling up and sustaining effective interventions.”

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10226506
- **Project number:** 3K01MH116335-03S1
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Emily Haroz
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $49,422
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2018-06-01 → 2020-10-15

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10226506

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10226506, SuSt-AInS: Sustainment of suicide prevention programs in American Indian Settings (3K01MH116335-03S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10226506. Licensed CC0.

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