Gain increased skills and knowledge in identifying and assessing for suicide risk.

Professionals who provide services for individuals or families often need to assess for risk of suicide in their clients or group participants.

For a number of services, assessing for suicide risk is a requirement under the relevant legislation and a clear process needs to be undertaken and documented. Increased suicidal risk has been identified in clients experiencing significant relationship issues as this often impacts upon their emotional health.

Assessments for safety and risk in clients also include the need to assess for suicide risk or engagement in past or present self-harming behaviours. In this workshop, a number of risk assessment frameworks will be considered to assist practitioners to make an informed decision about the level of risk and its impact on the service that the client is seeking.

Risk assessment frameworks will cover the assessment of suicide risk in:

• Preparation for and participation in mediation for family dispute resolution;
• Face-to-face counselling;
• Lawyer negotiations;
• Case management of families;
• Conducting groups.