Crisis Intervention Assessment Guide for School Counselors
Assess student suicide/self-harm risk and document crisis interventions defensibly
What You Can Do
Conduct rapid, comprehensive mental health crisis assessments that identify immediate safety risks, distinguish between ideation and intent, and determine whether emergency referral, safety planning, or parent contact is required. Claude guides you through validated risk evaluation protocols while helping you create legally defensible documentation that meets mandatory reporting standards and protects both student safety and your professional liability.
Features
systematically evaluates intent, means, timeline, and protective factors to determine acute vs. chronic risk levels
guides you through decision trees for parent notification, safety planning, emergency referral, or in-school monitoring
clarifies when and how to file reports based on state laws and district policies while maintaining therapeutic alliance
generates detailed, legally sound session notes that document risk factors, interventions, and clinical reasoning
expands beyond suicide risk to evaluate homicidal ideation, weapons access, and targeted threat scenarios
systematically catalogs strengths, coping skills, and support systems to inform intervention planning and hope-building
helps you integrate student disclosure, parent reports, peer reports, and behavioral observations into coherent risk picture
creates concrete next steps including safety contracts, emergency contacts, and re-assessment timelines
Example Output
Example 1: Suicidal Ideation Assessment
Risk Level: HIGH (Imminent)
Key Findings:
- Explicit suicidal ideation with specific plan (pills from medicine cabinet)
- Identified means and timeline ("tonight after parents sleep")
- Severe hopelessness; recent academic failure triggering acute crisis
- Protective factors: Close relationship with one teacher, active in soccer team
Recommended Action: Emergency referral to crisis center; parent notification; safety plan with means restriction
Documentation Generated: [Session note with risk formulation, interventions provided, referral details, and follow-up plan]
Example 2: Self-Harm Disclosure
Risk Level: MODERATE (Chronic with acute escalation)
- 6 months of cutting (not currently active)
- New escalation: discussing "going further" and isolation from supports
- Access to sharps; history of suicidal thoughts during previous crisis
- Protective factors: Engaged with school counselor; family aware; in sports
Recommended Action: Safety plan with parental involvement; increase counseling frequency; monitor for imminent warning signs
Documentation Generated: [Assessment summary, safety plan template, parent conversation summary]
What's Included
- SKILL.md instruction file: complete assessment protocol with decision trees and triage criteria
- Crisis Assessment Checklist: step-by-step guide covering disclosure intake, risk factor evaluation, protective factor identification, and action determination
- Documentation Templates: session note frameworks, safety plan forms, parent contact summaries, and emergency referral summaries
- Risk Level Decision Matrix: comparative guidance for distinguishing imminent, acute, chronic, and no-current-risk presentations
- Mandatory Reporting Quick Reference: state-by-state reporting thresholds and notification procedures
- Threat Assessment Addendum: specialized protocol for homicidal ideation and violence risk evaluation
Who It's For
- School counselors managing acute mental health crises and student safety decisions
- School psychologists conducting comprehensive threat and risk assessments
- Administrators responding to reported safety concerns and crisis incidents
- School nurses triaging mental health disclosures during health office visits
- Crisis intervention team members providing rapid response to student emergencies
Best For
- Rapid suicide/self-harm risk assessments during acute crises
- Creating legally defensible documentation for crisis interventions and mandatory reporting
- Distinguishing between suicidal ideation, intent, and imminent risk
- Developing safety plans and determining appropriate intervention level
- Threat assessment for homicidal ideation and violence risk evaluation
- Parent notification conversations and follow-up planning after crises
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