How does it work?
Simple Steps towards Safety
It all starts with a single first step.
The purpose of the Safety Planning Intervention is to provide people who have experienced a suicidal crisis with a specific set of coping strategies and resources to use in order to decrease the risk of suicidal behavior.
The Safety Planning Intervention is more than completing the Safety Plan form and actually consists of the following tasks posted on the right hand side:
Conduct a Risk Assessment
and obtain a description of a recent suicidal crisis to identify warning signs and how risk increases and decreases over time.
1
Review the Suicide Risk Curve
and describe how the individual’s suicidal crisis corresponds to the risk curve.
2
Provide a Rationale for a Safety Plan
to identify coping strategies and resources before a crisis to better manage the future crisis and allow time to pass without engaging suicidal behavior.
3
Describe the Development of a Safety Plan
as a collaborative process between the clinician and the individual.
4
Complete the steps of the Safety Plan.*
5
Explain How To Use the Safety Plan
once it has been developed.
6
Discuss the Details of the Safety Plan
Discuss the location of the Safety Plan, who to share it with, the likelihood of its use and potential barriers.
7
Conduct a Follow-up Review
of the Safety Plan to determine if it was helpful and needs revision.
8
