PSS Crisis Intervention and De-escalation 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A peer specialist arrives to support someone in crisis who is pacing rapidly and shouting. What is the FIRST priority?
- Call 911 immediately
- Ensure safety for both the person and yourself (Correct answer)
- Begin asking about their medication history
- Sit down and wait for them to calm on their own
Correct answer: Ensure safety for both the person and yourself
Safety assessment for both the peer specialist and the individual is always the first priority before any intervention.
Question 2: Which communication technique is MOST effective when a person in crisis is speaking very rapidly and in a disorganized way?
- Match their pace to show empathy
- Use slow, calm, and simple language (Correct answer)
- Ask several clarifying questions at once
- Redirect them to write down their thoughts
Correct answer: Use slow, calm, and simple language
Using slow, calm, and simple language helps regulate the person's nervous system and models the communication pace you want them to adopt.
Question 3: A peer specialist notices a person in crisis is becoming increasingly agitated after being told 'no' by a staff member. What is the best next step?
- Reinforce the staff member's decision firmly
- Explore what the person heard and validate their frustration (Correct answer)
- Offer a reward if they calm down
- Escalate to a supervisor immediately
Correct answer: Explore what the person heard and validate their frustration
Exploring what the person heard and validating their frustration helps de-escalate by showing the person they are understood.
Question 4: In a peer support context, 'trauma-informed crisis response' means:
- Documenting all traumatic events before intervening
- Recognizing that current distress may be rooted in past trauma and responding with sensitivity (Correct answer)
- Avoiding any discussion of past trauma during a crisis
- Requiring the person to attend trauma therapy before receiving support
Correct answer: Recognizing that current distress may be rooted in past trauma and responding with sensitivity
Trauma-informed crisis response means understanding that behaviors during a crisis are often survival responses tied to past trauma.
Question 5: When using the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) framework, the peer specialist's primary role is to:
- Assess lethality and make a clinical determination
- Support the clinician and maintain connection with the individual (Correct answer)
- Determine the appropriate level of psychiatric care
- Complete a formal risk assessment independently
Correct answer: Support the clinician and maintain connection with the individual
Peer specialists support clinicians and maintain human connection with the individual; clinical assessments are performed by licensed professionals.
Question 6: A person in crisis says, 'Nobody ever listens to me.' The most effective peer response is:
- 'That's not true — I'm listening right now, so stop saying that.'
- 'I hear that you've felt unheard. I want to understand what you're going through.' (Correct answer)
- 'Let's focus on solutions instead of how you feel.'
- 'You should talk to a therapist about those feelings.'
Correct answer: 'I hear that you've felt unheard. I want to understand what you're going through.'
Acknowledging the person's experience and expressing genuine interest validates their pain and builds the alliance needed for de-escalation.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of an UNHELPFUL response during crisis de-escalation?
- Maintaining a calm, steady tone of voice
- Giving the person space while remaining present
- Telling the person they are overreacting (Correct answer)
- Asking open-ended questions about their experience
Correct answer: Telling the person they are overreacting
Telling someone they are overreacting invalidates their experience and escalates distress rather than reducing it.
PSS Crisis Intervention and De-escalation 2
A peer specialist arrives to support someone in crisis who is pacing rapidly and shouting.
What is the FIRST priority?