The purpose of the group is to discuss and help the group member(s) to overcome thoughts and feelings of suicide in their lives or home environments. The group session can help to develop a personalized list of coping skills of each person needing help. Counselor will inform the member that we can get through our situations when we talk about them with others that care so much about them. 

Members will identify and discuss feelings, make healthy decisions, and achieve desirable results through individual (if needed) and small group counseling. After meeting the goals of the group, each member will be able to identify the complexity of suicide in order to increase help seeking behaviors in themselves and others (Stanley & Brown, 2012).

The ASCA Student Standards serve as the foundation for school counselors’ work in direct student services for all students and describe the knowledge, attitudes and skills students should be able to demonstrate as a result of a school counseling program. 

If you think that your teen has any of the warning signs for suicide, don't ignore them. Trust your instincts and either try to get more information or seek additional help. Routine screening is a key component for identifying and providing appropriate care for individuals at risk of suicide. Screening can be conducted in a variety of settings by trained individuals (Luke, 2014). 

If that can't happen, I will discuss to the member of a possible referral to someone else. Prior to engaging in the group session, I will have each person, with the parent/guardian, to sign a Consent Form to safeguard their confidentiality regarding the notes and sessions of the group. I will inform them that I will do my best to protect it unless you want to harm self or harm others while in session. If the confidentiality has been broken, I could be sued by my client or get in trouble with the state licensing agency in my location.

Using a participative style with a team of workers who know their jobs. The leader knows the problem, but does not have all the information. The employees know their jobs and want to become part of the team. Using a delegative style with a worker who knows more about the job than you do. You cannot do and know everything and the employee needs to take ownership of her job! In addition, this allows you to be more productive.

·       Instillation of Hope - faith that the treatment mode can and will be effective. 

·       Universality - demonstration that we are not alone in our misery or our "problems". 

·       Imparting of Information - didactic instruction about mental health, mental illness, psychodynamics or whatever else might be the focal problem of the group.  

·       Altruism - opportunity to rise out of oneself and help somebody else; the feeling of usefulness. 

·       Corrective recapitulation of primary family group - experiencing transference relationships growing out of primary family experiences providing the opportunity to relearn and clarify distortions. 

·       Development of socializing techniques - social learning or development of interpersonal skills. 

·       Imitative behavior - taking on the manner of group members who function more adequately. 

·       Catharsis - opportunity for expression of strong affect. 

·       Existential factors - recognition of the basic features of existence through sharing with others (e.g. ultimate aloneness, ultimate death, and ultimate responsibility for our own actions). 

·       Direct Advice - receiving and giving suggestions for strategies for handling problems. 

·       Interpersonal learning – receiving feedback from others and experimenting with new ways of relating (Yalom, 1995).

 

 | TITLE 19 | EDUCATION
| PART 7 | STATE BOARD FOR EDUCATOR CERTIFICATION
| CHAPTER 239 | STUDENT SERVICES CERTIFICATES
| SUBCHAPTER A | SCHOOL COUNSELOR CERTIFICATE
| RULE §239.15 | Standards Required for the School Counselor Certificate

 

 
 School Counselor Certificate Standards. The knowledge and skills identified in this section must be used by an educator preparation program in the development of curricula and coursework and by the State Board for Educator Certification as the basis for developing the examination required to obtain the School Counselor Certificate (ACA, 2014). The standards also serve as the foundation for the professional growth plan and continuing professional education activities required by §239.25 of this title (relating to Requirements to Renew the Standard School Counselor Certificate).   

Counselors incorporate ethical practice into their daily professional work and engage in ongoing professional development regarding current topics in ethical and legal issues in counseling. Counselors become familiar with the ACA Policy and Procedures for Processing Complaints of Ethical Violations1 and use it as a reference for assisting in the enforcement of the ACA Code of Ethics.

American School Counselor Association (2016). ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors. Alexandria, VA: American School Counselor Association.

Erbacher, T. A., Singer, J. B., & Poland, S. (2015). Suicide in schools: A practitioner’s guide to multi-level prevention, assessment, intervention, and postvention. New York, NY: Routledge.

Luke, M. (2014). Effective group leader skills. In J. L. DeLucia-Waack, C. R. Kalodner, & M. T. Riva (Eds.), Handbook of group counseling and psychotherapy. Sage Publications, Inc.

Ruble, A.E., Leon, P. J., Gilley-Hensley, L., Hess, S.G., & Swartz, K. L. (2013). Depression knowledge in high school students: Effectiveness of the adolescent depression awareness program. Journal of Affective Disorders, Volume 150, p. 1025-1030.

Stanley, B., & Brown, G. K. (2012). Safety planning intervention: A brief intervention to mitigate suicide risk. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 19(2), 256–264.

Yalom, ID. (1995). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy (4th ed.). New York: Basic Books.