Review article: Update on suicide assessment instruments and methodologies

This review summarizes the current status of suicide assessment and focuses on suicide specific instrumentation and methodologies developed in the last 30 years. The purpose is to provide a brief overview and comparison of modern suicide assessment tools. The emphasis is on instruments and methodologies that may have utility beyond the individual clinical application. Thirty-two suicide rating scales, as well as case vignettes, psychological autopsies, suicide reviews, and postsuicide assessment instruments are described. The Scale for Suicide Ideation-Worst and the military’s postsuicide assessment instruments appear to have the greatest reliability, broadest application, and utility for large-scale intervention/prevention purposes.