AAS Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the AAS exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📋 AAS Exam Format at a Glance
📚 AAS Topics to Study (69)
✍️ Sample AAS Questions & Answers
1. A 15-year-old discloses a plan to overdose on a parent's medication tonight. The FIRST action the clinician should take is:
When a specific plan and timeframe are disclosed, immediate lethality and means assessment is the priority to determine level of care needed.
2. A supervisor notices several warning signs of suicidal risk in an employee. Which response BEST reflects gatekeeper training principles?
Gatekeeper training emphasizes directly and compassionately asking about suicidal thoughts — research consistently shows that asking does not increase risk and opens the door for effective intervention.
3. The Safety Planning Intervention (SPI), developed by Stanley and Brown, differs from a traditional no-suicide contract primarily because it:
The Safety Planning Intervention is an evidence-based tool that collaboratively identifies warning signs, coping strategies, and social supports, avoiding the ineffective 'no-suicide contract' approach.
4. A newspaper reporter contacts you for comment after a local celebrity suicide. Using safe messaging guidelines, you should recommend the story:
Safe messaging guidelines for media recommend featuring survivor voices and crisis resources rather than sensationalizing the death or detailing methods.
5. Which of the following findings during a risk assessment should prompt IMMEDIATE escalation of care regardless of other protective factors?
Active ideation combined with a specific lethal plan and access to means represents high acute risk requiring immediate intervention such as hospitalization or crisis stabilization.
6. The VA's 'Comprehensive Suicide Risk Evaluation' tool is best described as:
The VA's comprehensive evaluation is a structured clinical interview designed to capture both historical (static) and current (dynamic) suicide risk factors in veterans.