Suicidal and High-Risk Clients

Full Course Description

High Risk Clients: Effectively Handle Five of the Most Critical Scenarios You’ll Face as a Clinician

Program Information

Target Audience

Counselors, Social Workers, Psychologists, Case Managers, Addiction Counselors, Marriage & Family Therapists, Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, and other Mental Health Providers

Outline

Client Assessment: Ask the Right Questions

Conduct comprehensive assessments
Strategies for eliciting the right information
What to ask yourself as you watch the client
Can the client provide informed content?
Limitations of the research & potential risks

The Suicidal Client: Recognize Suicide Risk & Effectively Intervene

Who is most at risk?
Implicit & explicit expressions of suicidal ideation & intent
Lethality assessment to protect client & clinician
Self-injurious behavior & suicidal ideation
How to conduct a suicide assessment
Safety planning for clients with suicidal ideation
When to hospitalize
Voluntary vs. involuntary hospitalization
When clients are not admitted to the hospital

The Violent Client: Confidently Manage Dangerous Situations

Dealing with our fears: Clinicians’ safety
When the clinician is the target
When others are the target
De-escalation techniques
Preventative planning
When to call 911
The hospitalization process
Duty to Protect (formerly Duty to Warn)

The Addicted Client: What ALL Clinicians Need to Know

Signs of intoxication
Imminent risk: Signs & symptoms of overdose
Identify withdrawal syndromes
Treatment planning
Drug basics that clinicians should know
Need-to-know street names of common drugs
When and how to refer to a higher level of care

Medical vs. Psychiatric Problems: Recognize the Difference

What could kill the client first?
Medical emergencies that present with psychological symptoms
Signs & symptoms of a medical emergency

The Traumatized Client: When Trauma Becomes High Risk

Recognize trauma in clients
Dangers of misdiagnosis & improper treatment
Strategies for trauma-informed care

High Risk Clinicians: After the Crisis

Protect your license with documentation
Debriefing & supervision
Address vicarious trauma
Mitigate compassion fatigue

Objectives

Complete a comprehensive mental health assessment that encompasses a multitude of clinical concerns including mental status, lethality, substance abuse and trauma.
Determine when to hospitalize clients struggling with suicidal ideation, substance abuse, medical concerns or violent urges and develop protocols for doing so.
Provide coping strategies and support to clients presenting with suicidal ideation by helping to create a safety plan in session.
Assess for risk of client violence towards others and develop strategies to safely intervene as well as effectively carry out the clinician’s duty to protect.
Determine signs and symptoms of intoxication, withdrawal, or overdose in clients and develop plans for effective intervention.
Differentiate between medical and psychological presenting concerns as they relate to case conceptualization.

Copyright : 04/18/2018

Suicide Assessment and Intervention: Assess Suicidal Ideation and Effectively Intervene in Crisis Situations with Confidence, Composure and Sensitivity

Program Information

Outline

Suicide: Who, When, How and Where

Addiction recovery
Trauma-informed care
Populations with multiple risk factors
Suicide attempt survivors – learning from their experience
Upstream clinical practices: reaching people before the point of crisis

Elicit Key Information from Suicidal Clients: Assessment and Level of Risk

Implicit and explicit expressions of suicidal thoughts
Communicating caring: Language to impart compassion and avoid stigma
Suicide risk assessment
- SAFE-T
- PATH WARM
- Ideation, plan, means, intent
- Level of risk

Formulate Treatment Plans that Help Clients Regulate Emotions and Make Them Feel Valued and Connected

Collaborative safety planning (or “Why Suicide Contracting is Dead”)
Proactive approaches to decrease the likelihood of suicidal despair
Multi-system approaches – support systems
Evidence-based treatments:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
  - Cognitive restructuring strategies
  - Emotional regulation exercises
  - Behavioral Activation
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy
  - How to organize a skills training group
  - Tips for phone coaching
- Relapse prevention plans
- Reduce access to lethal means
- Working with specific populations: veterans, the elderly

Confidently Handle Crisis Situations

Conduct a behavioral chain analysis
Validating reasons for suicide
Identify reasons for living
Use distress tolerance and CBT skills to manage a crisis
When and how to hospitalize

Suicide Grief Support and Innovative Suicide-Specific Care

Implement Suicide Grief Support
- Understand the unique nature of suicide grief
- Peer-based support: Connect clients to other survivors of loss
- Access and Reclaim compassion
  - Somatic resourcing
  - Remembered resources
  - Assess clients self-talk

ReInvest in a Life Worth Living: Rekindle the Desires of the Heart

The PIE of life – brainstorm possibilities of growth
Cultivate social connection and re-engagement
- Support and grief groups
- Toxic people
- Working with families impacted by loss
Choice and perspective
Foster gratitude and a spirit of contentment after loss
Measurements of Post-Traumatic Growth

Please Note: PESI is not affiliated or associated with Marsha M. Linehan, PhD, ABPP, or her organizations.

Target Audience

Social Workers, Psychologists, Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Case Managers, Addiction Counselors, Therapists, Nurses, Other Mental Health Professionals, School-Based Counselors, School-Based Psychologists, School-Based Social Workers, School Administrators