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The CAMS Approach to Suicide Risk: Philosophy and Clinical Procedures

Authors:
For example, key conceptual and theo-
retical contributors to this particular
approach include Shneidman (1985),
Beck (Beck et al., 1979), Baumeister
(1990), Orbach (2001), Linehan, (1993),
Maltsberger (1986), and Rudd (Rudd et
al, 2001).
Moreover, the CAMS approach
to care is heavily informed by empirical
evidence-particularly clinical trial re-
search of effective treatments (e.g., Brown
et al., 2005; Linehan et al., 2006). This
article is meant to provide a broad
over-
view to the evolving CAMS approach,
with a particular emphasis on its philo-
sophy and clinical procedures. The article
concludes with a brief discussion about
the current scientific status of CAMS as
on-going randomized clinical trails are
being actively pursued.
Simply stated, the CAMS approach to
suicidal patients is fundamentally focused
on the development of a strong therape-
utic relationship with a suicidal person
(i.e., the clinical alliance is the essential
vehicle for delivering a potentially life-
saving series of clinical interventions).
Within CAMS this goal is largely achie-
ved by intentionally engaging the suicidal
patient as an active participant in the
assessment of their own suicidal risk and
by collaborating with the patient as a
“co-author” of their suicide-specific treat-
ment plan. Thus, CAMS is both a philo-
sophy of care and a series clinical proce-
dures (guided by the use of the Suicide
Status Form-SSF) that are designed to
eliminate suicide as means of coping
while also helping to increase reasons for
living.
Philosophical Aspects of CAMS
As I have described elsewhere in depth
(Jobes, 1995; 2000; 2006) the CAMS
approach fundamentally conceptualizes
suicide differently from how many mental
health professionals were trained to think
about working with suicide risk in clinical
practice. For example, CAMS philosophy
forthrightly asserts that suicidal thinking
and behaviors are often a perfectly sensible
-
albeit worrisome and often troubling-
response to intense psychological pain
and suffering. In a similar sense, I would
contend that all suicidal persons have
struggles that are rooted in legitimate
needs and concerns-c.f., Orbach's (2001)
notion of “empathy for suicidal wish.”
For example, most suicidal people feel
they simply cannot bear the pain they
are in and they understandably seek an
escape from their suffering. Others
desperately want their loved ones to know
how much they suffer or feel compelled
to unburden those who love them. Still
other patients, in acute psychiatric dis-
tress, may feel compelled to perform acts
of self harm as a capitulation to punitive
voices they hear within a psychotic state.
In each of these scenarios, from the
intra-subjective perspective of the suicidal
person, there is a perfectly reasonable
and understandable explanation for sui-
cidal thoughts and behaviors. In my view
clinicians too often view suicidal thoughts
and feelings through a moralistic and
judgmental lens. In turn, such clinicians
often feel compelled to shame the patient
for having these feelings (c.f., Linehan,
1993). Within CAMS philosophy we
endeavor never to judge or moralize; sha-
ming the patient about suicidal thoughts
is anathema to the entire spirit of the
approach. In CAMS we simply seek to
understand how suicidal thoughts and
behaviors “work” for the suicidal patient.
When we truly understand the “functional”
aspects of suicidality, we are then much
better positioned to clinically propose
alternative and less life threatening ways
of coping and getting one's needs met.
When a clinician earnestly embraces this
kind of approach and tone, the net result
is that the suicidal patient feels
understood, respected, and appreci-ated
for these (often scary) ways of thinking
and feeling.
Beyond this attitude, the CAMS
clinician is also quite transparent about
their inherent bias – this is unabashedly
a suicide prevention-oriented approach
within clinical care. Thus, we would
never endorse suicide as a viable or
desirable “treatment option.” Moreover,
we are always forthright about laws related
to near term or imminent risk of suicide
that may require a voluntary or involun-
tary hospitalization of the patient. While
CAMS emphasizes working on an out-
patient basis, the approach is not funda-
mentally opposed to inpatient care and
would never advocate defying relevant
legal statutes pertaining to near term risk
of self harm.
To make this set of ideas a bit more
concrete, imagine the following inter-
action between a CAMS clinician and
a hypothetical suicidal patient. This dia-
logue embodies key features of the CAMS
philosophy of care.
Patient: I suffer so much and no one
seems to care; my husband just ignores
me – he gets mad at me and tells me to
get over it, snap out of it!
Clinician: You feel like no one appreciates
your struggles, particularly the person
want you most want to care?
Patient: It's not just him, it's everybody-
my parents, my kids, and my so called
friends…you know I honestly think
sometimes they would all be better off
without me…
Clinician: It sounds like you feel that
you have become a burden to them?
Does this view of things ever lead you to
thoughts of suicide?
Patient: Well yes, I have actually thought
about suicide quite a bit lately.
Clinician: I see…and when you think
The CAMS Approach to Suicide Risk:
Philosophy and clinical procedures
The CAMS approach to suicide risk: Philosophy and clinical procedures 3
SUICIDOLOGI 2009, ÅRG. 14, NR. 1
By David A. Jobes
The various and considerable challenges to effectively assessing and treating suicidal patients have
truly plagued the field of suicidology for many years (Jobes, Rudd, Overholser, & Joiner, 2008). The
Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) is a relatively new therapeutic
clinical framework that endeavors to address a number of these inherent challenges (Jobes, 2006).
The CAMS approach described in this article has applied and adapted seminal work of many well-
known clinical suicidologists who pioneered new and innovative ways of thinking about suicidal
states with related implications for clinical care therein.
about suicide does it upset you or comfort
you? Does it frighten you? Or instead,
does it give you a feeling of control and
power over your suffering?
Patient: It is more the latter because it
does make me feel like there is at least
one thing I can do about this whole
wretched situation that I am in…I just
can't bear the pain...it is all too much for
me…
Clinician: I see…well let's be frank…of
course suicide is an option that many
people use to cope with these exact
feelings. And yet if it was the best thing
to do, it seems unlikely that you would
be here with me in a mental health care
setting, right? From my bias, while I
acknowledge the option of suicide for
certain people, I would like to see if we
could find a way to end your pain, and
get your needs met, without you needing
to take your life. In my mind, you have
everything to gain and really nothing to
lose by earnestly trying to engage in a
life-saving treatment. There is a treat-
ment I would like to try with you called
“CAMS”-it is designed to help you learn
to cope differently and better and it could
help you get your needs met without
having to rely on suicide. To this end,
I wonder if I could persuade you – if you
would consider – engaging for 3 months
in this suicide-focused treatment…I really
think it could be quite helpful to you.
Patient: Well that is asking a lot…I really
don't know if I am up for doing something
like that…
Clinician: Yes, I understand; but then
again you have everything to gain and
really nothing to lose. While it is not my
preferred means of coping, you always
have the prospect of suicide to fall back
on later when you are not engaged in a
life saving clinical treatment. But for
now, I would like to see if we could find
a way to make this life more worth living
through this approach. Given the life
and death consequences, I do not think
it is too much to ask of you to give this
CAMS approach a go for three months…
what do you say?
Patient: I guess we can try, maybe it can
help? But you are right, the reason I am
here is that I am just not yet ready to
exercise my suicide option… How exactly
do we do this CAMS?
For many clinicians the above inter-
action may seem provocative and it may
make them uncomfortable. I would con-
tend however that the above interaction
is honest, transparent, empathic, and
creates the best possible conditions for
engaging a suicidal person in a poten-
tially life-saving course of clinical care.
Because CAMS so heavily emphasizes
informed consent, full and transparent
disclosure of clinician biases and agenda,
there is a kind of comfort and sense of
control within this approach that pro-
vides a real prospect for collaboratively
learning how the clinical dyad can save
the patient's life by developing alternative
ways of coping rendering suicidal coping
obsolete.
CAMS Clinical Procedures
While philosophical aspects of CAMS
are an important foundation, the approach
itself is made up of a series of clinical
procedures that have been developed
and empirically studied in real-world
clinical settings (Jobes, Bryan, & Neal-
Walden, 2009). As noted at the outset,
the CAMS approach employs the use of
a multipurpose SSF tool (refer to Appen-
dix A for an example of the first two
pages). The full SSF (seven total pages)
provides a means for: (a) the initial
assessment and documentation of suicidal
risk, (b) the initial development and
documentation of a suicide-specific
treatment plan, (c) the tracking and
documentation of on-going suicidal risk
assessment and up-dates of the treatment
plan, and (d) the ultimate accounting
and documentation of clinical outcomes.
The most detailed discussion of CAMS
procedures can be found elsewhere (Jobes,
2006). However, Jobes and Drozd (2004)
have succinctly described the following
step-by-step process for using CAMS in
outpatient care.
Step 1 – Early Identification of Risk
Typically the entry point for a new or
ongoing patient to be engaged in CAMS
occurs when a patient self-reports current
suicidal ideation. While a patient's verbal
self-report of ideation is an acceptable
entry point to CAMS, the preferred and
recommended approach is for CAMS to
be triggered by a psychometrically sound
symptom-oriented assessment tool which
typically have a suicide question embedded
among other symptom-related questions
(for a full discussion of the SSF “Core
Assessment” and psychometrics see Jobes,
2006 and Conrad et al., in press). For
our part, we think of the regular use of
brief symptom assessments collected at
every clinical contact is akin to medical
personnel routinely taking a patient's
vital signs. Moreover, such tools provide
extensive documentation and opportuni-
ties to study the nature of treatment pro-
cess and outcomes. Whatever the case,
early identification of suicidality is crucial
to using CAMS and fully realizing the
benefits of collaborative assessment and
treatment planning. Clearly, suicidal
ideation is not something that should be
identified in the last ten minutes of a
clinical hour. In CAMS, current suicidal
thoughts are to be identified within the
first ten minutes of clinical contact and
addressed as forthrightly as possible.
Step 2 – Collaborative Assessment
Using the SSF
CAMS is thus triggered by the presence
of current suicidal ideation as revealed
through a symptom assessment form or
verbal query. The collaborative in-depth
assessment of suicidal risk thus begins by
asking the patient for permission to lite-
rally take a seat next to them in order to
complete the first page of the Suicide
Status Form together. In this fashion, a
clipboard (or laptop) is handed back and
forth between the patient and clinician
during the assessment; literally and figura-
tively the dyad endeavor to work off the
same (assessment) page. As shown in
Appendix A, the first page of the SSF
involves completion of various rating
scales, qualitative assessments, and ran-
kings. These assessment constructs pro-
vide plenty of opportunity for discussion
and joint effort. The SSF assessment pro-
vides an important framework for under-
standing the idiosyncratic nature of the
patient's suicidality so that both parties
can intimately appreciate the patient's
suicidal experience. Completion of page
1 (i.e., Section A) of the SSF typically
takes 10-15 minutes. This initial joint
assessment activity then leads to the
clinician taking back the clipboard
The CAMS approach to suicide risk: Philosophy and clinical procedures
4
SUICIDOLOGI 2009, ÅRG. 14, NR. 1
(or lap-top) and completing the clinical
assessment at the top of page 2 (i.e.,
Section B) which was specifically con-
structed to assess for the most pernicious
risk variables according to recent empi-
rical research (Joiner, Walker, Rudd, &
Jobes, 1999; Oordt et al., 2003).
Step 3 – Collaborative Treatment
Planning
As can be seen in the Appendicized
example, when sections A and B are
complete, the dyad is then in a position
to “co-author” the Outpatient Treatment
Plan (Section C). Critically, both parties
have achieved together a thorough under-
standing about the patient's suicidal
experience, thereby revealing what must
be done to achieve and justify outpatient
care. Outpatient care is the explicit goal
of the CAMS clinician, which represents
perhaps a different orientation from con-
ventional thinking which can be biased
in favor of inpatient care (Jobes, 2000).
In this regard, the first problem to address
is self harm potential and the first goal
and objective is outpatient safety. By be-
ginning the focus on outpatient care, the
dyad can work to figure out the specific
interventions and elements of a “Crisis
Response Plan” which must be establis-
hed for outpatient care to proceed (refer
to Rudd et al., 2001). Two other suicide-
relevant problems, goals and objectives,
should then be identified from sections
A and B assessment data obtained from
the SSF. Critically, CAMS relies on the
Crisis Response Plan as the major inter-
vention for Problem #1. In our current
treatment-oriented research, the Crisis
Response Plan must include: (a) elimi-
nation of access to lethal means, (b)
development and use of a “Crisis Card,”
(c) efforts to interpersonally connect the
patient to others (refer to Jobes, 2006).
When the Outpatient Treatment Plan is
complete, the patient is then operatio-
nally understood to be on Suicide Status;
on-going suicide risk is then monitored
and tracked at each subsequent clinical
contact (using the SSF Suicide Tracking
Form). As discussed by Jobes (2006) an
additional page of documentation is also
included with the SSF that provides an
opportunity to document mental status,
The CAMS approach to suicide risk: Philosophy and clinical procedures
1) How much is being suicidal related to thoughts and feelings about yourself?
1) How much is being suicidal related to thoughts and feelings about others?
Low stress: :High stress
12345
2) Rate stress (your general feeling of being pressured or overwhelmed):
What I find most stressful is: uncertain about future
What I find most painful is: no job, isolated
Low pain: :High pain
12345
1) Rate psychological pain (hurt, anguish, or misery in your mind;
not stress; not physical pain):
Low agitation: :High agitation
12345
3) Rate agitation (emotional urgency; feeling that you need to take action;
not irritation; not annoyance):
I most need to take action when: at night, when I go to bed
Low hopelessness: :High hopelessness
12345
4) Rate hopelessness (your expectation that things will not get better
no matter what you do):
I am most hopeless about: everything, things never work out for me
Low self-hate: :High self-hate
12345
Extremely low risk:
(will not kill self)
:Extremely high risk:
(will kill self)
12345
6) Rate overall risk of suicide
Not at all: :Completely
12345
Not at all: :Completely
12345
Please list your reasons for wanting to live and your reasons for wanting to die.
Then rank in order of importance 1 to 5.
Rank REASONS FOR LIVING
3 my intelligence
1 a good job
2 finding someone to love
4 my brother
Rank REASONS FOR DYING
2 things never work out
1 can’t take the pain
3 won’t find healthy relationship
4 I hate myself like this
I wish to live to the following extent
Not at all: :Very much
12345678
The one thing that would help me no longer feel suicidal would be:
to find a job and a good relationship
I wish to die to the following extent
Not at all: :Very much
12345678
SUICIDE STATUS FORM–III (SSF III) INITIAL SESSION
Rate and fill out each item according to how you feel right now.
Then rank items in order of importance 1 to 5 (1= most important to 5= least importance)
Patient: Clinician: Date: Time:
Rank
N/A
3
1
5
4
2
Section A (Patient):
5
SUICIDOLOGI 2009, ÅRG. 14, NR. 1
5) Rate self-hate (your general feeling of disliking yourself; having no
self-esteem; having no self-respect):
What I hate most about myself is: being lost – again
diagnosis, overall assessment of risk and
case notes (all seven pages of the SSF
are available in the Jobes, 2006 text).
Step 4 – Clinical Tracking of Suicide
Status
At each subsequent clinical contact,
the patient's self report SSF assessment
is quickly completed at the start of each
session; at the end of the session the
Outpatient Treatment Plan is revisited,
revised, and/or up-dated (side-by-side)
depending on clinical progress or any
new emerging suicidal issues that need
to become a focus of treatment.
Step 5 – Clinical Resolution of Suicide
Status
Three consecutive sessions of no suici-
dal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors marks
the resolution on suicide risk; the SSF
Suicide Tracking Outcome Forms are
completed and the patient is taken off
Suicide Status as CAMS comes to a close
(refer to Jobes, 2006; Jobes et al., 1997).
In summary, CAMS engages the
suicidal patient differently than conven-
tional approaches, thereby creating a
different treatment trajectory. This
trajectory is fundamentally shaped by an
enhanced therapeutic alliance forged in
the shared pursuit of trying to assess and
understand what it means for the patient
to be suicidal and with that shared know-
ledge determining how that risk will be
clinically managed and eliminated.
Current CAMS Treatment
Research
CAMS is very much a living-breathing
and evolving clinical approach that is
based on “real world” clinical research
(Drozd, Jobes, & Luoma, 2000; Eddins
& Jobes, 1994; Jobes & Berman, 1993;
Jobes, 1995; 2000; 2003; 2006; Jobes &
Drozd, 2004; Jobes & Mann, 1999; 2000;
Jobes et al., 1997; 2004; 2005; 2007; in
press). A recent study has replicated and
extended earlier research (Jobes et al.,
1997) pertaining to the validity and
reliability of the SSF “Core Assessment”
(Conrad et al., in press). Moreover, there
is a growing body of correlational data
providing encouraging results about the
clinical use of CAMS and the SSF.
The CAMS approach to suicide risk: Philosophy and clinical procedures
6
SUICIDOLOGI 2009, ÅRG. 14, NR. 1
SUICIDE STATUS FORM–III (INITIAL SESSION) (PAGE 2)
Section B (Clinician):
Section B (Clinician):
Problem
#
Problem
description
Goals and objectives
Evidence for attainment
Intervention
(Type and frequency)
Estimated #
sessions
Self-harm
potential
Outpatient
safety
unemploy-
ment find a job
social
isolation social support
vocational assessment
& counseling
Problem solve to
social support
2 x/wk
for 4 weeks
4 weeks
4 weeks
Crisis response plan
Crisis card / avoid bridge/
read Choosing to live
1
2
3
OUTPATIENT TREATMENT PLAN (Refer to Sections A & B)
YES NO
YES NO
Patient understands and commits to outpatient treatment plan?
Clear and imminent danger of suicide?
When:
Where:
How:
How:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
1–2
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Describe:
Y N Suicide plan
Y N Suicide preparation
Y N Suicide rehearsal
Y N History of suicidality
Ideation
Frequency
Duration
Single attempt
Multiple attempts
Y N Current intent
Y N Impulsivity
Y N Substance abuse
Y N Significant loss
Y N Interpersonal isolation
Y N Relationship problems
Y N Health problems
Y N Physical pain
Y N Legal problems
Y N Shame
not sure
jump off bridge
jump
maybe use rifle
wrote note to brother
picked spot on bridge to jump
as a teen had significant suicidal thoughts
per day per week per month
seconds minutes hours
30 I
n/a
n/a no attempts, only ideation
feel must do something for pain
obsessing over past girfriend
feels he has cut himself off from others
over father & family issues
Y N Access to means
Y N Access to means
(not now)
Patient signature Date Clinician signature Date
now
The CAMS approach to suicide risk: Philosophy and clinical procedures
In one non-randomized control group
design, CAMS care was associated with
more rapid reductions of suicidal ideation
and decreased use of non-mental health
care (primary care and emergency de-
partment visits) than treatment as usual
(Jobes et al., 2005). Moreover, in a recent
within-group treatment study of suicidal
college students using linear analyses of
care over multiple time points, SSF/
CAMS care was associated with marked
reductions in overall symptom distress
and frequency of suicidal thoughts (Jobes
et al., in press). Based on these encour-
aging correlational data, we are currently
pursuing three randomized clinical trial
feasibility studies of CAMS in two out-
patient clinics and in one inpatient
setting. With accumulating feasibility
data we will soon be in position to pursue
well-powered “gold standard” randomized
clinical trials to rigorously study the
potential effectiveness of the CAMS
approach.
Summary
CAMS is an evolving therapeutic frame-
work supported by 15 years of clinical
research. As described in this article, the
approach emphasizes both a therapeutic
philosophy and a set of clinical proce-
dures. CAMS utilizes the SSF as a multi-
purpose road map that guides clinical
assessment, treatment, and tracking of
suicidal risk. The approach is designed
to foster a strong therapeutic alliance
and increase motivation within the
suicidal patient. Indeed, suicidal patients
themselves are the key to successful CAMS
care, as they acquire and craft new coping
skills and perhaps begin a process of
finding purpose and meaning in a life
that may have otherwise been lost to
suicide.
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SUICIDOLOGI 2009, ÅRG. 14, NR. 1
David A. Jobes, Ph.D. is a
professor of psychology and
co-director of clinical train-
ing in the Ph.D. clinical
psychology training program
at The Catholic University
of America in Washington
DC. Dr. Jobes has published
extensively on suicide pre-
vention in scientific journals and various books
on the topic. He consults widely and routinely
provides professional training in clinical suici-
dology, ethics, and risk management.
... A collaborative approach to safety planning has been shown to be a more effective means of mitigating suicide risk [14]. This approach is designed "to foster a stronger therapeutic alliance and increase motivation within a suicidal patient" [14]. ...
... A collaborative approach to safety planning has been shown to be a more effective means of mitigating suicide risk [14]. This approach is designed "to foster a stronger therapeutic alliance and increase motivation within a suicidal patient" [14]. The safety plan itself comprised six standard components: (a) recognizing warning signs of an impending suicidal crisis, (b) employing internal coping strategies, (c) utilizing social contacts as a means of distraction from suicidal thoughts, (d) contacting family members or friends who may help resolve the crisis, (e) contacting mental health professionals or agencies, and (f) reducing the potential use of lethal means [7,8,14]. ...
... This approach is designed "to foster a stronger therapeutic alliance and increase motivation within a suicidal patient" [14]. The safety plan itself comprised six standard components: (a) recognizing warning signs of an impending suicidal crisis, (b) employing internal coping strategies, (c) utilizing social contacts as a means of distraction from suicidal thoughts, (d) contacting family members or friends who may help resolve the crisis, (e) contacting mental health professionals or agencies, and (f) reducing the potential use of lethal means [7,8,14]. It is important that the safety plan "is brief, is in the patient's own words, and is easy to read" [7]. ...
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Individuals who suffer from mental illness are at an increased risk for suicide. That risk is substantially higher in the post-discharge period from psychiatric hospitalization. Safety planning intervention (SPI) is a common intervention tool that is utilized to mitigate the risk of suicide. Current research notes promising results of SPI use in the emergency department (ED); however, there is limited research regarding SPI use during psychiatric hospitalization on the day of discharge. This paper aims to evaluate current research on the topic and establish a need for more widespread use of SPI during psychiatric hospitalization.
... Camus writes at the beginning of The Legend of Sisyphus; there is only one really serious philosophical issue, and that is "suicide." Recognizing that life is worthwhile or not worth living is a major issue in philosophy (Jobes, 2009). One of the responsibilities of philosophy is "improvisation of everyday affairs" and it is precisely by distancing oneself from improvisation that the philosophical problem is born. ...
... Journal of New Findings in Health and Educational Sciences (IJHES), 1(1):[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] 2023 ...
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Objective: The aim of this study was to review the role of meaning therapy in suicidal people from various domestic and foreign sources in the past few years. Research method: The present research method was review-library. Thus, the keywords of semantic therapy, suicide and mental disorders in the search engines of Persian article banks including scientific information database (SID), Noormags, Magiran and Civilica and foreign article banks including Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect and Scopus in the period 2000-2021 was searched and selected articles were selected for this research. Results: The research findings indicate the numerous studies of domestic and foreign researchers on the subject of meaning therapy. The results showed that different types of psychotherapy approaches, especially meaning therapy, which is more culturally close to our country, can play an effective role in helping suicidal people. Conclusion: Existential approaches such as meaning therapy can play a useful role in reducing suicidal thoughts and behavior in clients that should be considered in psychotherapy sessions.
... A CAMS az 1990-es évek közepén bevezetett, öngyilkosság megelőzésére szolgáló, bizonyítékokon alapuló módszer, mely öt lépésre tagolható (Jobes, 2009). Első lépésben a kockázat előzetes azonosítása történik meg, és végig kiemelten fontos, hogy a fókusz Ö S S Z E F O G L A L Ó T A N U L M Á N Y Vadon Nikolett Beáta és mtsai a szuicid gondolatokra kerüljön, melyeket a páciens verbalizál. ...
... A kliensnek azonosítania kell az úgynevezett szuicid drive-okat, melyek az öngyilkossági kísérlethez vezettek (Calati et al, 2022). A második szakaszban az együttműködésen alapuló értékelés zajlik a "Suicide Status Form" (olyan skálákat tartalmaz, mint a "Psychological suff ering", "Stress", "Agitation", "Despair", "Self-directed hatred" és "Overall suicide risk") segítségével, mely egy önbeszámoló kérdőív, amit a páciens a terapeutával együttműködve tölt ki, ezzel is növelve a kettejük között lévő kollaborációt (Jobes, 2009). A harmadik fázisban a kollaboratív kezelési terv kialakítására kerül sor, a konkrét célkitűzések meghatározásával, majd a kliens és a terapeuta együttműködve kríziskezelési tervet dolgoznak ki. ...
Article
There are several approached to suicide prevention based on various psychotherapeutic interventions, which are effective, especially when these are matched to the given psychiatric patient population, environment and context. In this paper the possibilities of psychotherapeutic methods of suicide prevention and intervention are described along with their indications. The following interventions are discussed: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Suicide Prevention (CBT-SP), Cognitive Therapy for Suicide Prevention (CT-SP), Brief Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Suicide Prevention (BCBT), Problem Solving Therapy (PST), Problem Adaptation Therapy (PATH), Dialectial Behavior Therapy (DBT), SchemaFocused Therapy (SFT), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT), Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT), Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (TFP), Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS), Teachable Moment Brief Intervention (TMBI), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Attempted Suicide Short Intervention Program (ASSIP) and other Interned-Based Interventions (IBI). The effectiveness of the above methods may vary, however, they focus on the psychological processes playing a role in the emergence of suicidal behaviours including cognitive processes, as well as difficulties of problem solving and emotion regulation. As the efficacy of these interventions are supported by clinical trials, their use is recommended in case of this vulnerable patient population. The importance of using such methods in the clinical work with suicidal patients should be prioritized in our effort to provide a complex treatment for suicidal behaviour based on the most optimal and appropriate intervention considering the given patient.
... A further type of evidence-based treatment for suicide prevention was introduced in the mid-1990s by the Suicide Prevention Lab of the Catholic University of America (Colombia) led by David Jobes: the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS). This intervention can be articulated into five steps that describe its clinical procedures [52]. ...
... A further type of evidence-based treatment for suicide prevention was introduced in the mid-1990s by the Suicide Prevention Lab of the Catholic University of America (Colombia) led by David Jobes: the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS). This intervention can be articulated into five steps that describe its clinical procedures [52]. ...
... Trauma and other anxiety treatments likewise teach strategies such as deep breathing to help clients regulate when their minds and bodies are preparing for the fight-flightfreeze response (Foa et al., 2007). Suicidal patients are asked to develop a safety plan so that they know what to do when feeling intensely distressedthese are typically actions, not cognitive strategies (Jobes, 2015). ...
Article
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Cognitive reappraisal is an emotion regulation strategy with significant empirical support. However, it is also true that many people have difficultly using cognitive reappraisal—and any cognitive strategy that requires significant mental effort—while experiencing intense emotions. Per the tenants of emotion-regulation flexibility, we provide information on a therapeutic concept we call the “thinking threshold” that helps clients identify the level of emotional distress at which their thinking becomes impaired. When clients are above the thinking threshold they are guided to use behavioral and bodily focused emotion regulation strategies, and to use cognitive reappraisal and problem solving when below the thinking threshold. In this article, we outline the rationale for considering emotion-regulation flexibility with clients, identify why level of emotional intensity is an important context to consider when helping clients identify effective emotion regulation strategies, and review research supporting the notion that effortful cognitive strategies are less effective at high levels of emotional distress. We also describe how we teach clients to use the thinking threshold concept and provide a brief case study demonstrating the utility of the concept with a client. Finally, we review ways in which the thinking threshold could be tailored and adapted alongside acceptance-based approaches, and we describe future directions for both empirical examination of the thinking threshold as well as expansion within clinical practice.
... A safety plan is a brief best-practice intervention (Suicide Prevention Resource Center, 2008) designed to mitigate suicide risk by encouraging adaptive coping. Commonly included as an element of treatment protocols for individuals at risk for suicide (Asarnow et al., 2017;Brent et al., 2011;Jobes, 2009;Miller et al., 2006;Wenzel et al., 2009), safety plans have also been used as stand-alone interventions (Stanley & Brown, 2012). Modeled after the Safety Plan Intervention developed by Stanley and Brown (2012) and the safety plan protocol for adolescents described by King and colleagues, 2013; the MI-SP similarly emphasizes identifying personal coping strategies (healthy distraction and relaxation activities, reasons for living, coping statements), personal and professional sources of support (including crisis and emergency services), personal suicide warning signs (when the safety plan should be used), and steps for ensuring a safe environment. ...
Article
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Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among adolescents in the United States, and risk for recurring suicidal thoughts and behavior remains high after discharge from psychiatric hospitals. Safety planning, a brief intervention wherein the main focus is on identifying personal coping strategies and resources to mitigate suicidal crises, is a recommended best practice approach for intervening with individuals at risk for suicide. However, anecdotal as well as emerging empirical evidence indicate that adolescents at risk for suicide often do not use their safety plan during the high-risk postdischarge period. Thus, to be maximally effective, we argue that safety planning should be augmented with additional strategies for increasing safety plan use to prevent recurrent crises during high-risk transitions. The current article describes an adjunctive intervention for adolescents at elevated suicide risk that enhances safety planning with motivational interviewing (MI) strategies, with the goal of increasing adolescents' motivation and strengthening self-efficacy for safety plan use after discharge. We provide an overview of the intervention and its components, focusing the discussion on the in-person individual and family sessions delivered during hospitalization, and describe the theoretical basis for the MI-enhanced intervention. We then provide examples of applying MI during the process of safety planning, including example strategies that aim to elicit motivation and strengthen self-efficacy for safety plan use. We conclude with clinical case material and highlight how these strategies may be incorporated into the safety planning session. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
... In addition, CAMS was designed to be flexible enough for integration into a wide range of approaches without the intensive training required for some other evidence-based interventions for suicidal thoughts and behaviors (e.g., DBT;DeCou et al., 2019). In particular, the goals of CAMS are to increase risk assessment quality, focus treatment on reducing suicidal risk across diagnoses, improve documentation, and work effectively on an outpatient basis (Jobes, 2009). ...
Article
Introduction This meta‐analysis aimed to test the efficacy of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) intervention against other commonly used interventions for the treatment of suicide ideation and other suicide‐related variables. Method Database, expert, and root and branch searches identified nine empirical studies that directly compared CAMS to other active interventions. A random effects model was used to calculate the effect size differences between the interventions; additionally, moderators of the effect sizes were tested for suicidal ideation. Results In comparison to alternative interventions, CAMS resulted in significantly lower suicidal ideation (d = 0.25) and general distress (d = 0.29), significantly higher treatment acceptability (d = 0.42), and significantly higher hope/lower hopelessness (d = 0.88). No significant differences for suicide attempts, self‐harm, other suicide‐related correlates, or cost effectiveness were observed. The effect size differences for suicidal ideation were consistent across study types and quality, timing of outcome measurement, and the age and ethnicity of participants; however, the effect sizes favoring CAMS were significantly smaller with active duty military/veteran samples and with male participants. Conclusions The existing research supports CAMS as a Well Supported intervention for suicidal ideation per Center of Disease Control and Prevention criteria. Limitations and future directions are discussed.
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Suicide is a global public health concern. Training for mental health professionals (MHPs) is a common approach to ensuring sound clinical care for persons experiencing suicidality. This article proffers an updated set of suicide prevention core competencies for MHPs through a literature-driven process. First, we outline a stepwise model of suicide prevention training ranging from gatekeeper approaches to advanced suicide-specific assessment and intervention skills. We then review recent paradigm shifts in the suicide prevention literature: (a) emergence of ideation-to-action and fluidity theories; (b) shift to therapeutic prevention-focused risk assessment; (c) increased attention to cultural factors in suicide; and (d) advances in suicide-specific intervention. These trends in the suicide literature serve as a rationale to update the Core Competency Model (CCM) of Suicide Prevention, a training program intentionally designed to improve beginner-to-intermediate provider-focused (e.g., managing one’s own suicide attitudes) and clinical (e.g., clinical documentation) skills. We outline changes to competency wording and training, providing a sample CCM training curriculum. The Suicide Competency Assessment Form (SCAF), a self- and observer-rated measure of skill acquisition, is revised to reflect the updated competencies. Finally, we provide recommendations for (a) future psychometric assessment of the revised SCAF (SCAF-R); (b) suicide prevention training, implementation, and evaluation; and (c) ways to extend suicide prevention core competencies beyond MHPs.
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The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) was developed to modify clinician behaviors in how they initially identify, engage, assess, conceptualize, treatment plan, and manage suicidal outpatients. This approach integrates a range of theoretical orientations into a structured clinical format emphasizing the importance of the counselor and client working together to elucidate and understand the "functional" role of suicidal thoughts and behaviors from the client's perspective. Based on clinical research in various outpatient settings, CAMS provides mental health counselors with a novel clinical approach that is tailored to a suicidal client's idiosyncratic needs thereby insuring the effective clinical assessment, treatment, and tracking of high risk suicidal clients.
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Clinical work with suicidal patients has become increasingly challenging in recent years. It is argued that contemporary issues related to working with suicidal patients have come to pose a number of considerable professional and even ethical hazards for psychologists. Among various concerns, these challenges include providing sufficient informed consent, performing competent assessments of suicidal risk, using empirically supported treatments/interventions, and using suitable risk management techniques. In summary, there are many complicated clinical issues related to suicide (e.g., improvements in the standard of care, resistance to changing practices, alterations to models of health care delivery, the role of research, and issues of diversity). Three experts comment on these considerations, emphasizing acute versus chronic suicide risk, the integration of empirical findings, effective documentation, graduate training, maintaining professional competence, perceptions of medical versus mental health care, fears of dealing with suicide risk, suicide myths, and stigma/blame related to suicide. The authors' intention is to raise awareness about various suicide-related ethical concerns. By increasing this awareness, they hope to compel psychologists to improve their clinical practices with suicidal patients, thereby helping to save lives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Addresses policies and procedures as well as issues of liability and malpractice related to working with suicidal outpatients in agency and private practice settings. Issues related to ethical practice with suicidal patients are raised, general recommendations for risk management are discussed, and a step-by-step model for establishing, assessing, and/or revising suicide policies and procedures is presented. Also provided are concrete and practical suggestions to improve clinical practice with suicidal patients that may significantly decrease the risk of malpractice liability and ultimately provide better clinical care to these patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Two studies addressed assessment and treatment issues pertaining to suicidal student-clients. In Study 1, the theoretical construction and psychometric properties of the Suicide Status Form (SSF) were described. Results suggest that SSF items have good convergent validity, strong criterion-prediction validity, and moderate test-retest reliability. In Study 2, the SSF was applied to a sample of suicidal student-clients. Results suggest differences between client and clinician pretreatment SSF ratings. Client (not clinician) pretreatment SSF ratings could be used to correctly classify clients into acute resolver and chronic nonresolver treatment-outcome groups. Whereas all suicidal student-clients globally improved with treatment, chronic nonresolvers remained suicidally preoccupied throughout the academic year. These findings are discussed with regard to training, clinical practice, and future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Suicidal thoughts and behavior are common among mental health patients and are a source of stress for clinicians, who typically receive limited formal training on suicide. The U.S. Air Force initiated a project to enhance care and increase practitioner confidence when working with suicidal patients. A clinical guide was developed containing 18 recommendations for assessing and managing suicidality, strategies for meeting the recommendations, and clinical tools to facilitate quality care. Training opportunities and marketing efforts accompanied distribution of the guide. This initial article reviews the guide's development, content, and evaluation plan as a model that other health care systems, clinics, or training programs can follow to enhance care for suicidal patients. Outcome data will be presented in a follow-up article. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Suicidal patients are difficult and challenging clinical problems. Conceptual tools aid the clinician in organizing and evaluating the clinical situation. The authors provide a framework for suicide risk assessment that emphasizes 2 domains–history of past attempt and the nature of current suicidal symptoms–that have emerged in suicide research as crucial variables. These domains, when combined with other categories of risk factors, produce a categorization of risk for the individual patient, leading, in turn, to relatively routinized clinical decision making and activity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)