399 The development of a digital game to prevent suicide in youth who misuse substances

Abstract

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Suicide is the second leading cause of death in teens. Substance misuse, including opioids, is a risk factor for suicidal thoughts and behaviors among teens. School-based approaches are promising, yet they lack evidence on their effectiveness. To fill this gap, we created supportED, a digital game to prevent suicide in youth who misuse substances. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We conducted focus groups and interviews to inform the development of the digital game and discuss approaches to enhance user experiences, acceptability, and feasibility of the intervention. A semi-structured focus group/interview guide was developed, pilot tested, and used in focus groups/interviews. The guides aligned with constructs from a safety planning intervention, a well-recognized, evidence-based suicide prevention intervention, to identify potential warning signs of emotional distress, coping strategies, and resources for seeking help to prevent suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Focus groups/interviews were led by a facilitator, who is also a certified school counselor and licensed professional counselor, and a co-facilitator who took field notes and provided debrief summaries. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: A total of 35 participants, including 10 high-school-aged teens [aged 16-19], 10 college-aged youth [aged 18-22], 10 school-based providers, and five interviews with adults who had experience with opioids in their youth informed the development stage. Of the focus group participants, 25.7% identify as female (n=23), 71.4% identify as male (n=6), and 2.9% do not identify as male or female (n=1); 60% identify as White (n=18), 20% identify as multi-racial (n=6), 10% identify as Black (n=3), 3.3% identify as Asian (n=1), and 6.7% identify as race unknown (n=2); and, 37.1% (n=13) identify as Hispanic/Latinx. Salient themes that emerged focused on opioids, substance misuse, mental health, bullying, grief, family, identity, and stigma to create six distinct narratives in the digital game. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Findings informed the development of a digital game to prevent suicide among adolescents who misuse substances. The digital game is currently being evaluated in a pilot RCT to assess the preliminary efficacy of the intervention, user experience, usability, and feasibility of delivering the intervention and protocols among 60 youth.