People who have attempted suicide have the highest risk of completed suicide across the entire spectrum of the population (25 times higher than the general population). Yet emergency room personnel frequently discharge "non-lethal intent" individuals without contacting family members. The families of "lethal intent" individuals may be contacted, but primarily as a means of avoiding hospitalization. A suicide attempt creates extreme stress on the family who often are left to their own devices in forging a post-attempt regimen.

This workshop will focus on a psychoeducational model for working with such individuals and their families following emergency room discharge. Participants will be given a practical set of tools to help families in this crisis. Participants will also learn how to assess suicide risk in a client, forge an alliance among the attempter, the family and the clinician, and educate the individual and family about risk reduction to strengthen and broaden the safety net. This workshop is sponsored by the Tina Fund which is set up to work with families in the context of suicide attempts and in the aftermath of suicide.

Faculty: Edward J. Dunne, PhD, Clinical Project Associate, Ackerman Institute; member of the executive board of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. He is a pioneer in developing the family psychoeducational approach with people with major mental illnesses, and is co-author of Suicide and Its Aftermath: Understanding and Counseling the Survivors; Mary M. Arnold, APRN, Clinical Project Associate, Center for Families and Health, Ackerman Institute.

Date: Friday, April 11, 2008
Time: 10 am to 4 pm
Tuition: $115
CE Credits: 5

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