Managing Suicidal Risk: A Collaborative Approach [Paperback]

David A. Jobes PhD (Author), Edwin S. Shneidman PhD (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 21, 2006 | ISBN-10: 1593853270 | ISBN-13: 978-1593853273 | Edition: 1

This clinical manual offers essential tools and guidance for therapists of any orientation faced with the complex challenges of assessing and treating a suicidal patient. In a large, ready-to-photocopy format, the book provides step-by-step instructions and reproducible forms for evaluating suicidal risk, developing a suicide-specific outpatient treatment plan, and tracking clinical progress and outcomes using documentation that can help to reduce the risk of malpractice liability. In addition to providing a flexible structure for assessment and intervention, The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) approach is designed to strengthen the therapeutic alliance and increase patient motivation. Highly readable and user friendly, the volume builds on 15 years of empirically oriented clinical research.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"There is essential clinical wisdom here, informed by empirical data, experience, theory, and pragmatism. Simply stated, this book is an important tool for any clinician who aspires to engage the suicidal mind and clinically venture forth into the world of 'psychache.' This book is good news for the clinician and even better news for the lives of patients this approach will save."--from the Foreword by Edwin S. Shneidman, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles

"An exemplary treatment guide must combine science, clinical wisdom, and relevant personal experience, and must attend to the sometimes vexing everyday realities of clinicians seeing patients. Who is up to such a daunting task? David A. Jobes, for one. His model, The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS), is the epitome of a science-based, clinician-friendly approach, and his book does CAMS due justice. Readers of this book will be better positioned to understand, assess, and treat suicidal behavior."--Thomas Joiner, PhD, Florida State University

"It is rare to find a book that is firmly grounded in science and that also offers a flexible, commonsense model for clinical practice. Jobes has given us just such a gem. He provides essential tools for clinicians of every persuasion and level of expertise. This book is ideal for training graduate students or providing an infrastructure to supervision for psychologists, counselors, psychiatrists, social workers, or nurses who have contact with suicidal patients. The book will leave the reader with a newfound sense of confidence that his or her approach is embedded in 'best practices,' has a wealth of empirical support, and is one that patients will respond to in a positive fashion."--M. David Rudd, PhD, Texas Tech University

"Managing Suicidal Risk effectively meets the critical need for clear guidelines for assessing and treating the suicidal person. In the belief that most suicidal people want to end their pain, not their life, Jobes offers the clinician a comprehensive, multifaceted handbook tailored to present-day treatment realities. This book can serve to guide the clinician in providing the suicide-prone patient with hope and help through a life-threatening crisis. It is well suited for specialized courses in suicide prevention and crisis intervention, and for more general graduate-level courses in mental health counseling and assessment."--Katherine van Wormer, PhD, MSSW, University of Northern Iowa

"For the last decade, Jobes and his colleagues have been researching and refining their novel therapeutic approach. Jobes offers an antidote to haphazard and personalized views of working with suicidal patients, integrating the theoretical constructs of Edwin Shneidman, Aaron Beck, and Roy Baumeister into a comprehensive and evidence-based treatment strategy. The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) gives clients leverage to fight for their lives. Every graduate student and clinician working with suicidal patients needs to read this manual and learn this approach."--Morton M. Silverman, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior

"The CAMS approach has quickly achieved best-practice status and, as more clinical trials are completed, is destined to be sufficiently evidence-based to become a 'must' in every clinician’s repertoire. This accessible guide teaches clinicians to listen to and align with their patients, to consistently target suicide risk, and to effectively reduce that risk. Jobes is a master teacher, and readers of this book are lucky to be among his students."--Alan L. Berman, PhD, Executive Director, American Association of Suicidology

About the Author

David A. Jobes, PhD, is a Professor of Psychology at The Catholic University of America, where he is also the Codirector of Clinical Training of the PhD clinical psychology program. With research interests in suicidology, he has published extensively in the field and routinely conducts professional training in clinical suicidology. Dr. Jobes is a consultant to the U.S. Air Force Suicide Prevention Program and is a clinical consultant to the Psychology Service of the Washington, DC, Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He has served as a consultant to various Washington, DC, area counseling centers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Jobes is Associate Editor for the journal Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior. He is a past president, treasurer, and board member of the American Association of Suicidology (AAS) and is a recipient of the AAS Edwin S. Shneidman Award in recognition of early career contributions to suicidology. As a board-certified clinical psychologist (American Board of Professional Psychology), Dr. Jobes maintains a private clinical and forensic practice at the Washington Psychological Center.

Product Details

• Paperback: 222 pages
• Publisher: The Guilford Press; 1 edition (July 21, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593853270
• ISBN-13: 978-1593853273
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #192,717 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #94 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Death & Grief > Suicide

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Understanding suicide? Stop here!, June 23, 2009

By 

Ennio Ammendola (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Managing Suicidal Risk: A Collaborative Approach (Paperback)

Finally a book written by someone who knows exactly what he says ... and knows how to say it well! All those who want to have a greater understanding of the existential and philosophical implications of suicide SHOULD stop here. The best parts of the book are those dedicated to the explanation of concepts such as "MANAGING" suicidal risk and building a "COLLABORATIVE" approach. Dr. Jobes has explained with disarming clarity concepts related to the sphere of suicide that had always been difficult to understand. Anyone who is about to study suicide or would like to cultivate a greater understanding of it must consider this book as an excellent starting point. Dr. Jobes thanks for this amazing gift.


Finalmente un libro scritto da qualcuno che sa esattamente quello che dice e lo dice cosi bene! Tutti quelli che vogliono avere una maggiore comprensione delle implicazioni esistenziali e filosofiche che il suicidio comporta, devono fermarsi qui. La cosa che mi ha colpito maggiormente e' stata l'attenta analisi dedicata ai concetti di "MANAGING" il rischio del suicidio e all'approccio "COLLABORATIVE". Dr. Jobes ha esposto con disarmante chiarezza concetti legati alla sfera del suicidio altrimenti difficili da comprendere. Questo e' uno di quei libri che vanno consultati quotidianamente. Chiunque si appresti allo studio del suicidio o sia intenzionato ad una sua maggiore comprensione DEVE considerare questo libro come un eccellente punto di partenza. Buona lettura e ancora i miei piu' genuini complimenti al Dr. Jobes per questo interessantissimo libro.