Workshops

• Crisis Response Planning (CRP) for Suicide Prevention

  This workshop is designed to enhance individuals’ knowledge about crisis response planning for managing acute suicide risk, and to increase their ability to confidently and competently administer this intervention with at-risk individuals. The first half of the workshop provides didactic knowledge about suicide, the development of the crisis response plan intervention and its empirical support, all of which are designed to increase knowledge. The second half of the workshop includes clinical demonstrations by the instructor and skills practice by attendees, which are designed for individuals to acquire skill competency.

• Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (BCBT) for Suicide Prevention

  This two-day workshop is geared toward mental health professionals seeking to acquire entry-level information and training on the assessment, management and treatment of suicide risk among suicidal individuals. The first portion of the workshop provides intensive training in core competencies for the clinical care of suicidal patients, including general interpersonal dynamics, standardization of suicide-related terminology and documentation strategies. The workshop then provides a detailed, step-by-step review of the 12-session brief cognitive behavioral therapy (BCBT) treatment protocol. Practical strategies for effective treatment delivery are provided using case examples, role plays and skills practice, which illustrate concepts and interventions. Participants will receive a copy of the BCBT manual for future use with patients.

• Means Safety Counseling (MSC) for Suicide Prevention

  Means safety counseling, also referred to as means restriction counseling, entails assessing whether an individual at risk for suicide has access to a firearm or other lethal means for suicide, and working with the individual and their support system to limit their access to these means until suicide risk has declined. Of the many interventions and strategies developed to prevent suicide, means restriction has garnered the most empirical support and is one of the only interventions that has consistently led to reductions in suicide across diverse samples and populations. Although means safety has long been considered an important component of clinical work with suicidal patients, clear guidance and recommendations for discussing means safety with patients has only recently emerged. This training will provide an overview of means safety counseling with acutely suicidal patients and provide practical suggestions and tips for navigating conversations about safety with high-risk patients.

• Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for Suicide Prevention

  Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is an evidence-based cognitive-behavioral intervention for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Multiple randomized clinical trials have found significant effects for CPT in reduction of PTSD symptoms across trauma-exposed populations. CPT is a 12-session protocol that examines patients’ interpretations of traumatic events and uses cognitive restructuring interventions to help adapt patients’ negative beliefs that have been disrupted by traumatic events. Training will focus on both the theoretical background as well as the practical application of CPT for PTSD.