PATH Final Exam
How many referrals should we offer on each call if possible?
3
What is the procedure for answering 2-1-1 calls?
"United Way 2-1-1, how can I help you?"
Buffers
*can be positive or negative - future plans (+) or no planning for future (-) - sense of purpose (+) or no sense of purpose (-) - ambivalence for living - immediate support (family, friends) - engagement with helper
What steps would you take if a PATH staff member approves a motel stay after hours?
- contact Red Roof Inn to see if a room is available - if room is available, go to Call Center Google Drive and fill out form for hotel - email form to Red Roof Inn using instructions in Drive - place form on Erik's desk - if caller needs transportation, you can get a cab for them through Red Top - make sure caller isn't on banned list
What do you do for a high risk/high lethality suicide situation?
- decrease immediate danger (removal of means) - refer to mental health professionals (Local Crisis Team)
Intent
- expressed intent to die - preparatory behaviors - plan to hurt self - method known (location, time)
What situations require a page to a crisis team?
- high lethality suicide calls - third party suicide calls - calls from professional (i.e. the hospital) - anyone calls asking to speak to the crisis team
Capability
- history of attempt/survivor of suicide - history of violence - available means - currently intoxicated - acute symptoms of mental illness
In what scenarios would we break confidentiality and utilize the caller ID to contact emergency services?
- life and death situations - in progress suicide - duty to warn - child abuse
Reasons to contact PATH's on-call staff
- resource/referral questions - to handle a dangerous situation (duty to warn, threats to PVs) - handling frequent callers - emotional support for PVs - situations involving homeless after hours
Desire
- suicidal ideation (thoughts of suicide, desire to die) - psychological pain/psychache (depression, sadness) - helplessness, hopelessness, worthlessness, perceived burden - feeling intolerably alone, feeling trapped
What should you do for after hours call for shelter in McLean County?
- verify at each shelter that no beds are available and to see if they can accept the caller - if caller has kids under age 6, check crisis nursery - check to see if hotel money is available - check with on call staff - check to see if caller is on banned list
3 demographics
age, gender, and zip code
What do you do for a low/medium risk suicide call?
create a safety plan (problem solve & create a contract)
Countering Domestic Violence (CDV and Neville House)
domestic violence counseling, intervention, and shelter
What does empathy fall between on the continuum?
empathy is in the middle between sympathy and apathy *empathy puts us in a position to accurately identify feelings
What area does APS answer calls for after business hours?
entire state of Illinois from 4:30pm-8:30am M-F, weekends, & holidays
You should handle high lethality suicide by yourself?
false ask caller if they want to talk to crisis team; if they agree we page crisis or transfer them to crisis (need caller's permission)
We answer for government agencies after hours?
false we only answer for mental health agencies in McLean County
What is the importance of documenting unmet need and the reason for the unmet need?
funding purposes this info is given to all 211 counties so that their community can problem solve on new solutions to help residents
What do you do for a third party suicide call?
get caller in touch with the crisis team in the area of THE PERSON AT RISK
How would you handle a call that comes in for APS after business hours?
get caller's name and #, send it to APS work via Slack
Where do you log frequent callers' call notes?
in the "client activity and notes" section of the frequent caller's file in Refer
In a third party situation, which crisis team should we contact? The one in the area of the caller, or the one in the area of the person at risk?
person at risk
What methods can be used to identify a frequent caller?
you can put their phone number or name into Refer, or sometimes a nickname or identifying characteristic about the caller
How would you handle a call that comes in for APS during business hours?
transfer call or give caller # for APS business line (make sure they are in McLean or Livingston counties!)
We answer for AMBUCKS after hours?
true
NSPL Questions
1. Are you thinking about suicide? 2. Have you thought about suicide in the last 2 months? 3. Have you ever attempted to kill yourself before? (4. Are you a veteran?)
3 Part of the Safety Plan
1. Removal of means/supervision 2. Plan of action 3. Time-limited guarantee (follow up & reminder of 24/7)
What questions should you ask when recognizing a call is an emergency?
1. Where is the caller? 2. What is happening? 3. Who is it happening to?
What info do you need to schedule a follow up?
1. caller's name 2. phone # 3. date and time 4. if VM is okay 5. what line the call came in on
What are the steps of the problem-solving model?
1. define emotions/define problem 2. set goal 3. generate alternatives 4. evaluate alternatives 5. select alternative 6. end call
What is the difference between 9-1-1 and Metcom's roles in emergency response?
9-1-1 covers only Bloomington Metcom covers the rest of the county (Normal and rural areas)
Time-limited guarantee
Definition: 1. MUST offer a follow-up within 48 hours 2. Remind caller we are here 24/7, encourage caller to call back if they need to
Supervision (definition and example)
Definition: can they talk to someone in their life (family, friend) about how they're feeling including thoughts of suicide? Example: asking best friend to come over and talk about how they've been feeling and spend the night to make them feel safe
Plan of action (definition and example)
Definition: developing a realistic plan that the caller can follow through with to decrease feelings of suicide (short-term and long-term) Example: Short-term - listening to some music and eating favorite snack Long-term - talking to mother about feelings and giving referrals for counseling
Removal of means (definition and example)
Definition: get means for suicide out of reach/make means less accessible, ensure the caller's safety Example: putting the gun back into the safe & locking it, talking in a different room
4 Facets of Suicide
Desire, Capability, Intent, Buffers
What is the phone trick? How do you do it?
Dial out on your cell phone & call PATH staff. Bring your phone up to your mouth & reflect/summarize for the caller (& PATH staff) about what's been discussed. PATH staff will take it from there (come in, call EMS, call ECI)
What are the 2 homeless shelters in Bloomington? How are they different?
Home Sweet Home Mission (Billy Shelper Center) - houses women and families with children; strict toxicity rules Salvation Army (Safe Harbor) - will take intoxicated people who are behaving themselves and don't have drugs with them
How could you find the info for a crisis team for a caller who is in one of the counties that we serve? What about a call for outside of our service area?
INSIDE service area - Refer OUTSIDE service area - SAMHSA Mental Health Locator
What is "duty to warn?" What do we do in these situations?
If caller is threatening life of another person, we have a duty to warn that person of possible danger. We'll need to ask about plan and means. De-escalate the situation. PV should call PATH staff (staff will then call police and give them details PV gathered)
What is the difference between an information call and a referral call?
Information - a request of a phone number or address, and we don't need to offer a follow up Referral - more assessment, problem solving, and the giving of referrals that the caller may not have known, we do offer a follow up
What area does APS investigate reports in during business hours?
McLean and Livingston counties (reports of abuse)
How do you go about rescheduling a shift?
More than a week's notice: text PATH cell phone or send Jason an email Less than a week's notice: call into phone room (or get staff's info if after business hours) and speak to a staff member; need to speak to staff directly over the phone
What are ROEQS? Why do we use them?
Reflections Open Ended Questions Summarizations (summative reflections) used for active listening, conveying empathy, getting to the core of the problem(s)
What 3 crisis teams does PATH answer for after business hours? What counties do they serve?
The McLean County Center for Human Services (CHS) - McLean County Iroquois Mental Health Center (IMHC) - Iroquois County Institute for Human Resources (IHR) - Livingston County
How do you do the phone trick from home?
Use a second cell phone if available. If not, direct message the on-call staff person via Slack
Project Oz (YIP)
Youth Initiative Program provide youth runaway and lockout services, we answer for them after hours
Which calls would we not offer a follow up for?
bogus sex calls, information calls, calls for staff, calls from professionals, frequent callers (that aren't suicidal)
What do you do for a suicide in progress?
call 911 or Metcom (McLean County outside of Bloomington)
What should you do in the event that a caller reports a disaster?
call PATH staff on-call
What are the 3 divisions that make up PATH?
call center (crisis/2-1-1) homeless services adult protective services (APS)
Stepping Stones
rape crisis center, sexual assault counseling, and advocacy for victims
If a caller demands info of a person on-call for an agency we answer for, what would you do?
redirect the call
What should you do for call for shelter in McLean County during business hours?
refer caller to homeless services (give them # for business line)
