Assessment, Treatment, & Management of Suicide (ATMS)

ATMS Training
  • Dr. Clark has been studying suicide and passing that accumulated knowledge onthrough a variety of classes for over 30 years.  He’s taught multiple classes, both nationally and internationally, from a single hour overview to a 2-day workshop.  Recently, he’s published several articles on suicide in law enforcement.  You can find a complete list of articles and presentations by viewing his curriculum vitae.
  • This workshop meets the requirements of the Washington State law, effective in 2014, requiring 6 hours of training in suicide assessment, treatment, and management.  This requirement applies to licensed mental health professionals (psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, chemical dependency counselors, and mental health counselors) and to doctors and nurses (physician & physician assistant, osteopathic physician and surgeon, osteopathic physician assistant, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, advanced registered nurse practitioner, physical therapist & PT assistant, naturopath, and chiropractor).
  • For more information, you can read the new law directly at RCW 43.70.442.  The list of mental health professionals who are required to complete this training every six years is in Section 1, and the list of medical professionals who are required to complete a one-time only training is in Section 5.  Dr. Lucy Homans, WSPA’s Director of Professional Affairs, wrote an excellent explanation of the law,  “A Primer on the New CE Requirement on Suicidality”.
  • Dr. Clark designed this 6 hour workshop to follow the 8 core competencies developed by experts in suicidology for assessing and managing suicidal risk.  Topics include managing personal reactions to suicidal patients; assessing risk factors, warning signs, and protective factors; effective risk assessment; developing a treatment plan; and recognizing potential legal challenges.
  • At the completion of this workshop, participants will be able to:
    1. Recognize their personal reactions to suicide, and implement strategies to manage those reactions
    2. Describe basic terms of suicide, and assess risk factors, warning signs, and protective factors for suicide
    3. Assess level of suicidal ideation, plans, and means, and compose a clinical formulation of risk
    4. Select necessary components of a treatment and services plan for patients considering suicide
    5. Describe important therapeutic processes to document
    6. Explain potential legal challenges
  • Certificates
    1. Contact hours certificate, 6 hours – no charge
    2. WA State Psychological Association certificate, 6 CEs – no charge to WSPA members, $15 for non-members
    3. WA Association for Marriage and Family Therapy certificate, 6 CEUs – no charge
    4. Medical Quality Assurance Committee, Category II CME – no charge
  • Cancellation policy
    • Cancellations received up to seven working days before the training are refundable, minus a $25 registration service charge. After that, cancellations are subject to the entire training fee, which you may apply toward a future training. If you don’t cancel and don’t attend, you are still responsible for payment. Substitutions may be made at any time.