Resolving Therapeutic Dilemmas with Suicidal Clients: A Clinical Handbook - Paperback

by Robert J. Gregory (Author), Rebecca J. Shields (Author)

Engaging suicidal clients in treatment and recovery is intense and challenging. Robert J. Gregory and Rebecca J. Shields share principles and techniques grounded in research and extensive front-line experience in this concise, pragmatic guide. The book is uniquely structured around specific dilemmas or sticking points that frequently arise in the treatment of suicidal clients. It provides a roadmap for responding skillfully when a client says, for example, "I just want to die," "Nothing is going to help," or "If you discharge me, I'll kill myself." Rich clinical vignettes and transcripts illuminate the underlying dynamics of each dilemma and demonstrate effective ways to move through it, regardless of treatment modality.

Author Biography

Robert J. Gregory, MD, is SUNY Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University. He is Founding Director of the Psychiatry High Risk Program (PHRP), a recovery-based outpatient treatment program for suicidal youth and adults, and developer of the PHRP's core treatment modality, Dynamic Deconstructive Psychotherapy. The PHRP has been designated as a best practice in suicide prevention and received a Psychiatric Services Achievement Award (Silver) from the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Gregory has authored more than 70 articles and book chapters and does trainings nationally and internationally.

Rebecca J. Shields, DO, is a board-certified Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University. She serves as Co-Director of the Psychiatry High Risk Program (PHRP), where she oversees the adolescent program and provides training and clinical care in the PHRP's core treatment modality, Dynamic Deconstructive Psychotherapy. Dr. Shields has authored articles on recovery-based suicide prevention and the use of Dynamic Deconstructive Psychotherapy with adolescents.