At one time, hospitalization was considered the standard of care when working with patients with suicidal thoughts or suicide attempts. However, almost all suicidal patients can now be treated effectively as outpatients. Several outpatient interventions can substantially reduce the risk of a suicide attempt (see, for example, reviews by Jobes & Chalker, 2019; Nuij et […]
Seasoned psychotherapists have all had the experience of sitting in a room with patients who have serious thoughts of killing themselves. Some may have already had a suicide attempt or multiple attempts and continue to have access to the means to kill themselves. They may feel like others would be better off if they were […]
Over the last 20 years, the rates of suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and suicides have rapidly increased in the United States (Garnett & Curtin, 2023). At the same time, evidence has developed that interventions can effectively reduce the risk of suicide (Calati et al., 2018). Given these changes, it is time for APA to require […]
Having a patient die from suicide is one of the events most feared by psychotherapists, yet a recent survey found that 6% of psychologists had at least one patient die from suicide while in treatment in the last year (Leitzel & Knapp, 2021). The ongoing possibility of a patient’s suicide prompted Simon (2011) to write […]
When evaluating suicidal patients, it is often indicated to ask them about their religious beliefs about suicide because many patients believe that their spiritual or religious beliefs1 are closely linked to their mental health (Yamada et al., 2020). For example, some patients in significant emotional distress say they would not kill themselves because their religion […]
Suicide is a public health crisis (Cornette et al., 2009). An estimated 703,000 people a year in the world end their life (World Health Organization, 2022). Additionally, for every completed suicide, there are 20 people attempting suicide, and many more experiencing suicidal thoughts or ideation. Suicide is the third leading cause of death in 15 […]
Many psychotherapists have treated patients who denied suicidal ideation, and then attempted suicide later. This can leave the treating psychotherapists upset, bewildered, and asking what they could have done differently. Sometimes patients who unexpectedly attempted suicide developed their suicidal thoughts after their psychotherapists asked them about suicide. At other times, these patients already had suicidal […]
Suicides occur from a congruence of many factors including the quality and amount of social support an individual receives. Fortunately, several treatments have strong support for their effectiveness in reducing suicide attempts including cognitive behavior therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, and the collaborative assessment and management of suicide among others (Calati & Courtet, 2016). Whatever intervention […]
Effective psychotherapies, including treatments for suicidal patients, rely heavily on relationship skills for their success (Norcross & Lambert, 2018). Unfortunately, many suicidal patients have reported that their providers have not always displayed those essential relationship qualities (e.g., Blanchard & Farber, 2020; Hom et al., 2020; Hom et al., 2021; Richards et al., 2019a; Richards et […]
The death of a patient by suicide is the professional event most feared by psychologists (Pope & Tabachnick, 1993). Fortunately, evidence has accumulated for the effectiveness of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy for the treatment of suicidal patients, although other interventions are promising as well (Calati […]