Crisis Intervention: Distress-Centre Model (IN: Suicide in Canada, edited by A A Leenaars, S Wenckstern, I Sakinofsky, R J Dyck, M J Kral & R C Bland)

A distress centre model of crisis intervention is presented in this chapter. A thorough discussion of volunteer selection, training & evaluation is followed by a description of the training volunteers need to conduct complete & appropriate risk assessments. Other services that a distress centre might offer are reviewed, e.g. specialized crisis lines for teens. The authors briefly discuss the necessity of program evaluation to maintain ongoing & future credibility in the community. (14 refs.)