As we know, compliance with TJC’s National Patient Safety Goal 15 on Suicide Prevention continues to be a challenge for many organizations. Survey findings related to inadequate suicide risk assessment abound.
But what about the requirements for training and competency assessment for your staff who conduct suicide risk assessments? Recently, we’ve seen an increase in the number of survey findings for this requirement. Here’s a few examples from survey reports:
“Reviewed six competency files of staff who care for suicidal patients. There was no documentation of training and competence assessment related to care of the suicidal patient, including completion of the suicide risk assessment. This was confirmed by the Director of Human Resources.”
“There was no documentation of any formal, organized training for nursing staff who conduct the suicide risk assessment.”
So, let’s take a look at just what TJC requires in terms of training and competency assessment for suicide prevention ...
