Crisis Management

PSY483 

Danell Pugh 

11 February 2010

Assessments for Suicide Risk

SAD PERSONS Scale – The counselor must focus on 10 factors that are related to suicide: Sex, Age, Depression, Loss of rational thinking, Lack of social support, Lack of a spouse, Substance Abuse, Sickness, Presence of an Organized Plan, and Previous Attempts (Argosy University, 2010).

Ask the following three questions:1. Are you thinking of hurting yourself?2. How would you hurt yourself?3. What stops you from hurting yourself?(Miller, 2005)

How to Approach the Topic of Suicide

The counselor must build trust and create rapport with the client.

The counselor must examine those with suicidal ideations in a serious, thoughtful, and careful manner.

The counselor must remain calm and supportive throughout the therapy sessions.

(Miller, 2005).

Interventions Used for Suicidal Ideations

Low to Moderate Risk – ask the client to sign a contract agreement which states that they will not attempt suicide for a certain length of time and if they feel like hurting themselves, they will contact the counselor.

Moderate to High Risk - around the clock supervision from family and friends, hospitalization, and/or medication.

(Miller, 2005)

Duty to Warn

According to North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (2004), “Duty to warn refers to the responsibility of a counselor or therapist to breach confidentiality if a client or other identifiable person is in clear or imminent danger. In situations where there is clear evidence of danger to the client or other persons, the counselor must determine the degree of seriousness of the threat and notify the person in danger and others who are in a position to protect that person from harm (Herlihy & Sheeley, 1988; Pate, 1992; para. 1).

Concerns When Working with Suicidal Clients

Previous suicidal attempts, especially within the past year, increase the risk that the client could attempt suicide again

The counselor needs to consider their wording so that they don’t exacerbate suicidal thoughts.

Rather than decreasing the suicidal thoughts, the client, instead transfers blame to others, which could transform suicidal thoughts into violent homicidal thoughts.

People are suicidal for different reasons. The counselor needs to choose the correct approach specific to the needs of the individual client.

Reference Argosy University. (2010). PSY 483: Substance abuse

treatment II: Module5: Suicide Risks. Retrieved on 11 February 2010, from http://myeclassonline.com/re/DotNextLaunch.asp?courseid=3860277.

North Central Regional Educational Laboratory. (2004). Duty to warn. Retrieved on 11 February 2010, from http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/css/cs3lk1.htm

Miller, G. (2005). Learning the language of addiction counseling (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Assignment 2 Grading Criteria and Respective Point Value Maximum

Points Described assessment tools for assessing lethality. 5 Described how they would approach the topic of suicide with clients they

believed were showing suicidal tendencies. 15 Described the types of interventions to use with clients who have suicidal

ideations. Provided supporting data for the usefulness of these interventions. 15 Described the duty to warn and what this may require of them. 10 Described what concerns they have regarding working with suicidal clients

and how a new counselor might address these concerns. 15 Used APA standards. 4 Total: 64