Suicide Risk Identification

The U of M Department of Psychiatry has some excellent resources on line that deal with suicide risk identification.

The assessment and management of people at risk of suicide: For emergency departments and mental health services acute assessment settings [New Zealand] URL: http://www.nzgg.org.nz/guidelines/0005/Assessment_Management_Algorithm.pdf
Commissioned by the Ministry of Health and developed by the New Zealand Guidelines Group (NZGG), these evidence-based guidelines offer "how to" advice on assessing and managing people presenting at hospitals with suicidal thoughts, or after a suicide attempt.

Assessment of Suicidal Behaviors and Risk Among Children and Adolescents
URL: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/suicideresearch/measures.pdf
This is a commissioned review of instruments used to assess suicidal behaviors and risk among youths. It resulted from a 1999 National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-sponsored workshop, "Treatment Research with Suicidal Patients," that identified a need for knowledge regarding which measures of suicidality should be of most utility in treatment studies.

Emergency management of the adolescent suicide attempter: A review of the literature [Journal article]. Published in: Journal of Adolescent Health. May 2002;30(5):312-25. The authors reviewed the literature on risk factors, assessment, disposition, treatment options and noncompliance of adolescent suicide attempters presenting to an emergency department. An assessment instrument, along with model guidelines for psychiatric referral of adolescent suicdie by emergency department staff was developed by the authors. A copy of the instrument, Tool for Evaluating Suicide-Attempter Teens [TEST], is included in the article. U of M staff can access an online copy of the article through the Electronic Journal Section in the library.

Still under construction 1/31/06