Available only from IPTM, this one of a kind course is designed specifically for experienced law enforcement crisis negotiators and will teach you how to handle and manage incidents involving suicidal threats, gestures, and behaviors. 

From the law enforcement perspective, suicide is not a philosophical or ethical issue, but a serious emergency that requires a prompt, coordinated response in order to preserve life.  It is also a potentially volatile situation that can involve a greater threat to the public’s safety.  This course will arm you with a variety of approaches, strategies and techniques that you can use to preserve the life of a person threatening intentional self-destructive behavior and control the escalation of the situation. 

We will review the basic principles of crisis intervention and discuss a variety of techniques applying them specifically to suicidal individuals.  We will teach you how to assess suicidal behavior and differentiate between intentional self-injury and an actual suicidal threat.  You will also learn how to manage your own stress and deal with your personal biases towards the suicidal subject.

Topics include:
•  Definitions of suicidal behavior and other intentional self-destructive behaviors
•  Differentiating intentional self-injury from suicide
•  Determining suicidal intent and lethality
•  Assessing suicidal behavior
•  Suicide risk and protective factors
•  Psychological suicide risk factors
   -  Mood disorders
   -  Personality disorders
   -  Schizophrenia
•  Victim precipitated homicide
•  Types and behaviors of homicide-suicide
•  Victim-perpetrator relationships
•  Intervention techniques
   -  Basic principles of crisis intervention
   -  Communicating with the traumatized person
   -  Dealing with cognitive distortions and problem solving abilities
   -  Managing helplessness
•  Stress and the crisis negotiator
•  Perception of the suicidal person and biases
•  Post incident reactions and dealing with surviving family and friends

Prerequisite:   You must have successfully completed training in crisis hostage negotiations.

Audience:   Sworn members of law enforcement and corrections, hostage negotiators, patrol officers, military investigative personnel, non-law enforcement members of a crisis negotiation team, mental health professionals and clergy members supporting law enforcement activities

Instructor:  Dennis R. “Zak” Zakrzewski

Course length:  24 hours