Crisis
    Intervention

... research resources for counselling students

Web Destinations

Key Sites for Practitioners

It is somewhat artificial to separate websites in this category. Many of the websites for practitioners contain important information for clients. Similarly, many of those designed for client information can lead counselors to insights into the client who is experiencing a crisis. Scanning client-oriented sites is especially useful for the new professional or in the case where an experienced clinician encounters a new client situation.

American Association of Suicidology (AAS)
The American Association of Suicidology website is intended as a resource page for anyone concerned with suicide and its prevention. Pages include available resource organizational information, a National Directory of Support Groups, and crisis centers in your area. It is one of the only organizations that focuses on crisis intervention.
http://www.suicidology.org

Convening
Convening is a site that provides crisis intervention information. An electronic bulletin board and training materials are available online. Audiotapes and information from previous Convenings are also available. Comments and feedback are encouraged. They have a links page to crisis intervention sites on the Web.
http://www.uic.edu/orgs/convening

The National Institute of Mental Health—Suicide Facts
Suicide Facts is a fact sheet dealing with suicide studies and prevention. Information available at this site includes research findings and current statistics.
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/suicideprevention

The Suicide Paradigm: Rethinking Suicide
A father whose son committed suicide in 1996 wrote this website. The personal aspects of his experience are interesting, but the related pages are excellent reading for the clinician, especially the ethical page, which takes aim at APA's ethical code with regard to suicide.
http://members.tripod.com/~LifeGard/index.html

Victim Assistance Resource
The VAR website is an information, research, and networking resource for victim assistance specialists, professionals in related disciplines, and all interested in the field of victimology. At the site individuals will be able to search the site for information, conduct research in the virtual library, and even participate in a research exchange. The site has excellent links to other areas of crisis intervention.
http://www.vaonline.org

Wounded Healer
The Wounded Healer Journal is an online publication aimed at assisting psychotherapists who have experienced devastating loss or exceptional trauma. The site includes 50 articles about loss and trauma, a section on where to find a therapist, a forum, a bookstore, and a chat room.
http://twhj.com/index.shtml

Key Sites for Client Information

Grief Recovery Online
Grief Recovery Online (GROWW) provides resources for bereaved individuals. Peer groups meet in an online chat room, the emotional turmoil of loss is discussed, and frequently asked questions are answered.
http://www.groww.com

National Runaway Switchboard
The National Runaway Switchboard operates a hotline for runaway youth as well as their families and friends. This site provides a listing of all the services the NRS provides, a bulletin board, teen information, statistics, and links.
http://nrscrisisline.org

RAINN Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network
The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network operates a national hotline for survivors of sexual assault. This homepage contains sections on RAINN news, counseling centers, membership, and statistics. Called Unlock the Silence, the free 24-hour hotline phone number is available online.
http://www.rainn.org

Suicide Questions and Answers
The site focuses on confronting the account of suicide in our society, exploring the myths surrounding why people become suicidal. The contents at the site include essays, discussion groups, frequently asked questions, warning signs, and even a suicide quiz. The site is very basic, but it can be translated into several languages.
http://www.rochford.org/suicide

Professional Development

Professional Organizations

American Association of Suicidology
According to their website, The American Association of Suicidology (AAS) "was founded in 1968 to promote research and public awareness, train professionals and lay persons, serve as a national clearinghouse, provide for networking, and to establish national standards for organizations and individuals who work with self-destructive behavior, people in crisis and people who are suicidal." The organization offers a certificate as an "Individual Crisis Worker" based on experience and a test. This is a certificate mainly for volunteers. It requires no formal training.

4201 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 408
Washington, DC 20008
Tel: (202) 237-2280
FAX: (202) 237-2282
e-mail:amyjomc@ix.netcom.com
http://www.suicidology.org/

National Organization for Victim Assistance
The National Organization for Victim Assistance is an organization of victim and witness assistance programs and practitioners, criminal justice agencies and professionals, mental health professionals, researchers, former victims and survivors, and others committed to the recognition and implementation of victim rights and services. The site contains information on crisis resources, national certification training information, events, and current projects.
http://www.try-nova.org

Codes of Ethics

American Association of Suicidology
AAS has no specific code of ethics, but they publish a very short set of basic values available from the association or on the Web.
http://www.suicidology.org

American Counseling Association
The ACA code of ethics appears to make no mention of specific ethical responsibilities in crisis intervention.
http://www.counseling.org

The Suicide Paradigm: Rethinking Suicide—Ethics Page
This site was described earlier as a personal site set up by a father whose son committed suicide. One of the links is a page of ethical considerations regarding suicide, for therapists and friends.
http://members.tripod.com/~LifeGard/index-3.html

Annotated Bibliography

Foundational Works

Caplan, G. (1964). Principles of preventive psychiatry. New York: Basic Books.
Caplan's enormously influential work proposed the idea that poor resolution of life crises leads to long-range problems in development and difficulty in dealing with later issues.

Danto, B. L. (1978). Crisis intervention in a classroom regarding the homicide of a teacher. The School Counselor, 26, 1-38.
The entire issue discusses the homicide of a teacher in front of 30 first graders. School counselors should revisit this article since it analyzes the situation in depth, including the steps taken to help ease the posttraumatic stress of the children.

Kubler-Ross, E. (1969). On death and dying. New York: Macmillan.
This book was reissued in 1997 in paperback and is still a valuable book for clinicians and for those who have lost loved ones. Based on her lectures, the book outlines her first thoughts on the process of grief and focused national attention on the plight of the bereaved and, more importantly, on the process of dying.

Lindemann, E. (1944). Symptomatology and management of acute grief. American Journal of Psychiatry, 101, 141-148.
This article was written in response to clinical findings following the 1942 Coconut Grove Fire in Boston. In the dancehall fire 493 people were killed. In the mourning relatives, Lindemann detected stages of grief and was the first to suggest a developmental course in coping with a crisis.

McGee, L. (1974). Crisis intervention in the community. Baltimore: University Park Press.
Los Angeles Suicide Prevention was among the most respected and studied suicide prevention centers in the country. This book summarizes their community-oriented approach using telephone counseling.

Key Current Works

Hendricks, J. E. & Byers, B. (1997). Crisis intervention in criminal justice/social service (2nd ed.) New York: Charles C. Thomas.
This is a comprehensive book on crisis intervention theory and practice. The second edition contains updated information on crises of children, ethical issues, suicide, stress, and burnout.

Zealberg, J. J., & Santos, A. B. (2003). Comprehensive emergency mental health care. New York: Beard Books.
Written by two psychiatrists, this book suggests practical solutions to common emergent mental health problems. These include managing prisoners, responding to hurricane victims, telephone consultation, psychopharmacology, and dealing with violent and agitated patients.

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