This webinar discusses safety planning which is a brief, customisable intervention for the prevention of suicide, delivered digitally. It involves collaborating with the person at risk to develop coping strategies and identify professional and social supports that can be accessed if a suicide crisis emerges. However, the effectiveness of safety plans depends on therapeutic alliance and a solid understanding of what makes a quality, personalised plan. This webinar will provide person-centred training on how to develop effective safety plans with clients and patients.

Learning objectives:

• Describe the steps of the Safety Planning Intervention (SPI), an evidence-based brief intervention for mitigating suicide risk.
• Explain and introduce the concept of safety planning to clients and patients.
• Demonstrate how a client can create a safety plan using an app on their smartphone and share it with trusted contacts.
• Collaborate with clients and patients to create personalised, specific entries for each step of the safety plan.
• Identify the elements of a high-quality safety plan, and barriers/enablers for use.
• Explain the evidence base supporting safety plans, including potential mechanisms for its effectiveness.

Speaker: Dr Grant Blashki

Grant is a practising GP, Lead Clinical Advisor or Beyond Blue, and Associate Professor at the Nossal Institute for Global Health, and Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, both at the University of Melbourne. Grant is a public speaker and active media commentator on public health issues. He runs a clinical information website called Family Doctor Expert. He has co-authored many peer-reviewed publications and books and he’s the lead editor of the textbook General Practice Psychiatry.

Speaker: A/Prof Glenn Melvin

Dr Glenn Melvin is an Associate Professor and clinical and counselling psychologist from the School of Psychology, Deakin University in Melbourne. Glenn’s research interests include suicide prevention and the assessment and management of depressive disorders. He works clinically with young people and teaches post-graduate clinical psychology.

Speaker: Mark Davis

Mark was invalided out of the police with mental health issues including suicidality, conditions he has since lived with for many years. He now devotes his time to assisting others who he hopes may benefit from his experiences.

Presenter: Dr Phoebe Holdenson-Kimura

Phoebe is a GP working in Sydney who is passionate about promoting mental wellbeing and supporting GPs who have a special interest in Mental Health. With recent experience working in rural Far North Queensland and Cambodia, she is interested in rural and global perspectives on mental health.

This webinar is designed for GPs, GP registrars, psychologists, and allied mental health practitioners, or any other health professional with an interest in improving outcomes for patients with mental health conditions.