This highly practical book explains how to identify and manage suicidal individuals and supports the health professional in assisting the patient to choose life rather than death.

This highly practical book explains how to identify and manage suicidal individuals and supports the health professional in assisting the patient to choose life rather than death. Suicide Risk Management: A Manual for Health Professionals provides health professionals with the tools to recognize, assess, and manage the suicidal or potentially suicidal patient and presents important information regarding the epidemiology, risk factors and associated aspects of suicide. The book presents two unique assessment tools – TASR and SRAG – created for use in the authors’ own practice. Refined through actual experience, these proven tools help assess and evaluate patients with confidence. The Tool for Assessment of Suicide Risk (TASR) provides instruction on how to use it appropriately in the clinic, while the Suicide Risk Assessment Guide (SRAG) acts as a self-study program to assess clinical evaluation skills, without running the risk of mishandling a suicidal patient. Throughout Suicide Risk Management: A Manual for Health Professionals, bulleted lists, tables and flowcharts effectively describe how to use the many factors to assess the risk of suicide in an individual patient. A summary card at the back of the book also provides an 'at a glance' guide to the assessment process.

Patient suicide is an unavoidable occupational hazard of psychiatric practice. Indeed, it is the rare clinician who does not struggle, even agonize, over the complex task of assessing and managing the risk of suicide in patients. Patient suicides account for the greatest number of malpractice suits filed against psychiatrists and for the greatest number of settlements and verdicts covered by professional liability insurers. In this book, written by a clinician for clinicians, Dr. Simon, an established expert in psychiatry and law, offers A solid, easy-to-understand review of how medical malpractice law applies to patient suicides. He discusses the standards of care physicians must meet, the conditions associated with malpractice liability, and how best to minimize risks of litigation. Extensive references to peer-reviewed literature on suicide and recent malpractice cases, including those triggered by patient suicides, which give insight into the latest developments in both the scientific community and the courts. Much-needed practical advice, including advice on working with suicide risk assessments and suicide prevention contracts, on treating suicidal patients in various settings (outpatient, inpatient, collaborative, and emergency), and on coping with issues arising in the aftermath of a patient's suicide (documentation, confidentiality, and survivor care). Clearly defined risk management guidelines that will help clinicians avoid litigation or establish a sound legal defense if sued for malpractice. Numerous case examples that make the theoretical discussions and clinically based risk management guidelines that follow come alive. Rich in advice that draws on the author's more than 40 years of clinical experience, this book serves as an essential aid to clinicians.

"The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) approach has garnered a strong evidence base and has been implemented by therapists from a range of orientations in diverse clinical settings. This extensively revised manual provides a proven therapeutic framework for evaluating suicidal risk and developing and implementing a suicide-specific treatment plan that is respectful, empathic, and empowering. In addition to their clinical utility, the procedures used for assessment, treatment, and progress monitoring within CAMS can help reduce the risk of malpractice liability. In a large-size format for easy photocopying, the book includes all needed reproducible tools for implementing CAMS. Purchasers also get access to a webpage where they can download and print the reproducible materials"--

The loss of a patient to suicide is the most feared outcome in mental health care, signaling a calamitous, irrevocable failure in treatment. Clinicians working with patients at high risk of harming themselves are well acquainted with the pressures of professional and personal accountability/m-/and, in our increasingly litigious society, are continually aware of their legal accountability as well. How does the law define "reasonable care" in the treatment of suicidal patients? What are the most clinically and legally appropriate procedures for evaluating and managing suicide risks? And what forms of precautionary planning and documentation are recommended for minimizing the likelihood of malpractice actions? Drawing upon years of clinical experience as well as extensive malpractice claims data and relevant case law, this book outlines effective assessment, management, and treatment procedures that balance the need for high-quality care with the requirements of court-determined and statutory standards. Three widely cited papers on standards of care, along with several new chapters, analyze common failure situations in outpatient and hospital settings and review salient findings on suicide risk factors. Contributors weigh the risks and benefits of hospitalization; review the clinician's legal and clinical responsibilities within the context of the hospital treatment team; and delineate the key components of sound clinical judgment. Taking a closer look at a central element of many suicide-related malpractice suits, the volume also explores specific issues surrounding pharmacotherapy. Surveying current pharmacological approaches to psychiatric disorders closely associated with suicidal behavior, chapters present clear, concise guidelines for treatment planning, documentation, and post-discharge planning. Finally, a dialogue between two forensic authorities illustrates the complexities involved in evaluating standards of professional practice in liability-related court cases. Offering frank, balanced coverage of an extremely challenging clinical situation, [ital]Risk Management with Suicidal Patients[/ital] helps psychologists, psychiatrists, and other practitioners develop their own clinically and legally informed strategies for providing the best possible care. It is also an invaluable resource for legal professionals, and may serve as a text in courses in forensic psychology, forensic psychiatry, ethics, and mental health law.

The range of problems that arise due to violence, mental health problems, substance abuse and familial breakup require fast accurate risk assessment. These two volumes by Kemshall and Pritchard explores the techniques needed to solve such problems.

The third edition represents the editors' cutting-edge vision while preserving the down-to-earth, accessible, and trustworthy style that has made the book a staple. It offers up-to-date perspectives on assessment and management of suicide risk in a reorganized and easy-to-use volume.

This book offers mental health clinicians a comprehensive guide to assessing and managing suicide risk. Suicide has now come to be understood as a multidimensionally determined outcome, which stems from the complex interaction of biological, genetic, psychological, sociological and environmental factors. Based on recent evidence and an extensive literature review, the book provides straightforward, essential information that can easily be applied in a wide variety of disciplines.