SSW Crisis Intervention & Mental Health 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student tells a school social worker that she has been cutting herself but insists it is 'not to die.' What is the MOST appropriate immediate response?
- Inform the student's parents and dismiss her from the session
- Conduct a thorough risk assessment including intent, frequency, and severity of self-harm (Correct answer)
- Refer immediately to an emergency psychiatric facility without further assessment
- Provide a list of hotline numbers and schedule a follow-up for next week
Correct answer: Conduct a thorough risk assessment including intent, frequency, and severity of self-harm
A complete risk assessment is required before determining level of care, even when suicidal intent is denied.
Question 2: Which crisis intervention model emphasizes restoring the individual to at least their pre-crisis level of functioning through a structured, time-limited approach?
- Psychodynamic therapy model
- Roberts' Seven-Stage Crisis Intervention Model (Correct answer)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy model
- Cognitive Processing Therapy model
Correct answer: Roberts' Seven-Stage Crisis Intervention Model
Roberts' Seven-Stage model is a widely used crisis intervention framework focused on stabilization and return to baseline functioning.
Question 3: A student who witnessed a peer's suicide at school is exhibiting acute stress reactions. Which intervention is CONTRAINDICATED in the immediate aftermath?
- Ensuring physical safety and basic needs
- Providing psychoeducation about normal stress reactions
- Conducting a formal Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) within 24 hours (Correct answer)
- Connecting the student with supportive adults
Correct answer: Conducting a formal Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) within 24 hours
Research shows that mandatory group debriefing (CISD) within 24 hours can interfere with natural recovery and is contraindicated in acute trauma.
Question 4: When assessing a student's suicide risk using the SAD PERSONS scale, the letter 'A' stands for:
- Anxiety disorder
- Age
- Alcohol or substance abuse (Correct answer)
- Avoidant personality
Correct answer: Alcohol or substance abuse
In the SAD PERSONS mnemonic, 'A' represents Alcohol or substance abuse, a significant risk factor for suicide.
Question 5: A school social worker learns that a student made a suicide attempt over the weekend. The student is returning to school today. What is the FIRST priority?
- Notify all teachers so they can monitor the student
- Conduct a re-entry meeting to assess current safety and create a support plan (Correct answer)
- Require the student to sign a no-suicide contract
- Place the student in an alternative setting to minimize peer contact
Correct answer: Conduct a re-entry meeting to assess current safety and create a support plan
A structured re-entry meeting to assess safety and coordinate support is the standard best practice for postvention after a student's suicide attempt.
Question 6: Which of the following statements about suicide contagion (the 'Werther effect') is MOST accurate for school settings?
- It only applies to celebrity suicides, not peer suicides
- Sensationalized or detailed media reporting of a suicide can increase risk among vulnerable youth (Correct answer)
- Contagion effects are limited to students who personally knew the deceased
- Social media has no documented role in suicide contagion among adolescents
Correct answer: Sensationalized or detailed media reporting of a suicide can increase risk among vulnerable youth
The Werther effect demonstrates that graphic or romanticized depictions of suicide can trigger imitative behavior, particularly in vulnerable youth.
Question 7: A student in acute psychotic crisis is brought to the school social worker. The student is disorganized and believes staff are trying to harm him. The social worker's FIRST action should be:
- Challenge the student's false beliefs to restore reality testing
- Ensure the student's immediate safety and contact emergency services (Correct answer)
- Attempt to conduct a full mental status examination
- Gather collateral information from teachers before intervening
Correct answer: Ensure the student's immediate safety and contact emergency services
In acute psychosis with safety concerns, ensuring immediate safety and mobilizing emergency support takes precedence over assessment or therapeutic techniques.
SSW Crisis Intervention & Mental Health 2
A student tells a school social worker that she has been cutting herself but insists it is 'not to die.' What is the MOST appropriate immediate response?