Detainee in Liberty County Texas Dies After Suicide Attempt-Pt.7
Precautions to Protect Potentially Suicidal Detainees Continued
In addition to making decisions about a potentially suicidal detainee’s clothing, their bedding, and possessions should be considered. If clothing and bedding should be removed for their safety, they are issued a safety smock and a safety blanket. Precautions are also added as regards access to showers.
Incarcerated individuals often share common risk factors that heighten the risk of suicide, such as alcohol or drug abuse. All things considered, suicide prevention strategies should be applied to the entire population of any county or municipal jail.
Suicide Risk Assessment
Because of the heightened risk of suicide which is a fact of life in jails, a suicide risk assessment of detainees is important. Information should be gathered pertaining to past, recent, and current suicidal behavior and ideation. Each person’s mental and physical history should be considered, including the family’s mental health history and various circumstances, such as suffering a head injury.
There are many approaches to applying a continuing process of suicide risk assessment of detainees in jails. It is extremely important not to rely solely on self-reporting. When possible, previous treatment information should be reviewed. Staff observations provide objective data that should not be ignored. In addition, giving serious consideration to input from family members is strongly encouraged.
Learn more in Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, and Part 6 of this continuing series.
Providing helpful resources to detainees in Texas jails is one of the purposes of this website. Accusing persons or institutions of wrongdoing it never intended on this site.
–Guest Contributor
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