Suicide Risk Assessment: The Art of Interviewing

The primary goal of this training is to build therapeutic skills to assess suicide risk. This training examines risk assessment from both the client perspective and a systemic perspective. Evidence-based best practices are shared regarding risk assessment and intervention. Therapeutic engagement, risk assessment, safety planning, and responding with appropriate interventions for risk reduction create the framework for this session. This is a comprehensive training that shares the most current research as well and best practices (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural and the Collborative Management and Assessment of Suicide) in clinical intervention. This training also addresses the developmental needs of transition age youth and explores the potentially detrimental interactions of developmental stage and risk. Through experiential exercises, participants learn why youth need to be explicitly taught safer coping skills to regulate emotions and reduce internal stats of distress.