Is this a Crisis?... or a Pattern? Adapting Risk Assessment for Persistent Suicidality

Is It a Crisis- or a Pattern? Adapting Risk Assessment for Persistent Suicidality

Not all suicidal presentations are the same- and responding to every disclosure as an acute crisis can sometimes be ineffective, disruptive or even inadvertently reinforcing.

In this professional webinar, Accredited Mental Health Social Worker and Clinical Director Alex Wilson explores the important distinction between episodic suicidality, where risk represents a significant change from baseline, and persistent or chronic suicidality, where suicidal thoughts may form part of a longer-term pattern.

Drawing on contemporary research and more than 22 years of experience working with complex and high-risk presentations, Alex will examine how clinicians can adapt assessment and intervention without becoming complacent, overly reactive or reliant on simplistic risk classifications. Participants will learn to identify changes in risk patterns, distinguish chronic vulnerability from acute escalation, and respond in ways that support safety while building the person’s capacity for long-term recovery.