Topic Contents

Suicide Assessment

Topic Overview

A suicide assessment is used to find out whether a person is at risk
for a suicide attempt. Questions asked during a suicide assessment
may include:

Have you ever felt so bad that you thought you
would like to go to sleep and never wake up?

Have you ever felt so
bad that you thought you would be better off dead?

Have you ever
thought that you are a burden on your family and friends or that your family
and friends would be better off without you?

Has someone close to you died by suicide?

Do you notice that
you've been drinking more alcohol (or using more drugs) than usual or taking
chances that you might not have taken before?

Have you ever thought
about hurting or killing yourself?

Have you ever tried to hurt or
kill yourself?

Do you ever hear voices telling you to hurt or kill
yourself?

Have you tried to hurt or kill yourself?

What
stops you from hurting or killing yourself?

If you ever thought of
hurting or killing yourself, how would you do it?

If a person has thoughts of harming himself or herself, the health
professional always asks if he or she has access to the materials needed to
follow through with those plans.

If a depressed person has thoughts of suicide, a plan for suicide,
and access to the materials needed to follow through with the plan, he or she
is at great risk and should be admitted to a hospital for safety.

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How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.