40 Years of Service 1970 - 2010 - Rappahannock Area Community ...

RACSB Staff Become ASIST Trainers
As the Coordinator for RACSB
Emergency Services, Jacque
Nuzum wanted to add a suicide prevention
piece to the services provided
by her office. Ms. Nuzum and
Melanie Sheppard, Emergency
Services Therapist, became certified
ASIST trainers (Applied Suicide
Intervention Skills Training) through
the Virginia Department of Health,
Division of Injury and Violence Prevention.
The local community expressed interest
in these trainings. Two trainings
offered in March and May
quickly reached capacity. A separate
training for probation and parole officers
was held in April.
RACSB Substance Abuse Case
Manager Krystal Parker stated that
it was the best training she has ever
attended. She shared that the training
provided her with practical information
she can use.
Two Crisis Intervention Trainings for
area law enforcement have been
conducted this year with a third
training scheduled for September. A
total of 63 officers have participated
in the trainings coordinated by the
Rappahannock Area Crisis Intervention
Team and led by certified local
trainers.
This 40-hour training provides officers
the opportunity to enhance
their skills for when they come into
contact with individuals experiencing
a mental health crisis. Officers
learned to better recognize individuals
suffering from mental illness,
techniques to verbally de-escalate
the situation, basic crisis intervention
skills, and suicide intervention
skills.
ASIST, the most widely used
intervention skills training in
the United States, is a two-day
intensive, interactive and practice-dominated
course. It is
designed to help caregivers
recognize risk for suicide, intervene
to prevent immediate
harm, and link persons at risk
to the next level of care.
ASIST is often used by people
in a variety of “front line” positions.
It is for all caregivers
(any person in a position of
trust). It is suitable for school
counselors, psychologists, social
workers, administrators,
nurses, case workers, youth
workers, police/correctional/juvenile
justice staff, foster care staff, clergy
and all 'natural helpers' who work in
the field of human service (regardless
of the age group served).
Trainer Frank Shannon with the
Stafford County Sherriff’s Office is
quick to point out that these tools
can even be used by officers in routine
traffic stops. The skills add
value to any interaction with the
public.
Officers spend several hours of the
training conducting role-plays
where they encounter scenarios
taken from real life experiences of
the trainers. Scenarios include a
veteran experiencing combat flashbacks
and an individual threatening
a public suicide.
One of the scenarios features a
man who has barricaded himself
because he can no longer afford
the medication that treats his mental
illness. He man recognizes the benefits
of the medication and is distraught
over his declining mental
state. After initially seeking to harm
himself, the man begins to worry
about the expense he is causing the
county because the officers have
spent so much time with him. The
response from training participant
Trainer Melanie Sheppard (right) provides feedback
to role-play participant Glenda Knight from
Project LINK.
To learn more about suicide prevention
initiatives in Virginia, please
visit: www.preventsuicideva.org.
RACSB Emergency Services Therapists
are available 24-hours a day,
365-days a year by calling 540-373-
6876.
Additional Crisis Intervention Trainings Held for Officers
Training participants respond to a call of
a man negotiating with the devil for his
soul over the telephone while in a retail
store.
Officer Paul Dooley with the Fredericksburg
Police Department sums
up the training perfectly. “You’re not
in trouble. You’re in crisis and we’re
here to help.”
To learn more about the Rappahannock
Area Crisis Intervention Team,
please visit www.rappahannockareacit.org.
4
www.racsb.state.va.us Summer 2010