The goal of this preventing suicide continuing education program is to provide nurses with information about The Joint Commission’s Sentinel Event Alert Issue 46, which focuses on preventing suicide in the general medical hospital, including EDs and medical/surgical units. After studying the information presented here, you will be able to:
- Identify five suicide risk factors that indicate a patient is at increased risk for self-harm
- List three suicide-screening questions that help clinicians determine if a patient is at high risk for suicide
- Discuss four measures to maintain safety for suicidal patients
