Course Description
The Columbia Protocol is now widely recognized as a gold-standard, innovative suicide risk screening method. It has been implemented as policy in many states and systems across the U.S. and abroad with tremendous benefit– identification of people who would have otherwise been missed while redirecting scarce resources. This workshop will review suicide prevention data, myths, the development of the tools, administration covering items that are predictive of increased risk, and the impact the Columbia Protocol is having across the globe. Participants will learn how to administer the full assessment and screening versions of the tool, how to customize the tools and how to interpret results.
What You’ll Learn
Explain how screening with the C-SSRS can be used to identify at-risk individuals and identify steps taken to implement a comprehensive screening program that includes targeted and public health approaches to prevention.
Facilitators
Adam Lesser, LCSW
Adam Lesser is a licensed clinical social worker, Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatric Social Work in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Lecturer at the Columbia University School of Social Work and the Deputy Director of the Columbia Lighthouse Project at the New York State Psychiatric Institute where he assists with all suicide prevention activities related to public health including the international dissemination and implementation of the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS). He has published, presented internationally and consulted to state and local governments on best practices for suicide risk identification and prevention and has trained over 100,000 individuals on these methods. His work has been featured in Social Work Today Magazine and on Atlanta National Public Radio, CNN-espanol, Univision and other local media outlets.
