Guidelines for Handling the Suicidal Patient: a Cognitive Perspective (IN: Suicide: Guidelines for Assessment, Management, and Treatment, edited by B Bongar)

This chapter details a model for assessing & treating suicidal patients in an outpatient setting. Model is derived from 20 years of work by A.T. Beck & colleagues at the Center for Cognitive Therapy, University of Pennsylvania. It integrates basic research, assessment techniques, & therapeutic strategies. Authors discuss use of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Scale for Suicide Ideation (SSI), Hopelessness Scale (HS) & other instruments. Guidelines for Practice are included. (11 refs.)