Share your thoughts on suicide risk assessment and safety planning. Here are some ideas for your post to get you started:
After reviewing the Emotional Fire Safety Plan from the Suicide Prevention and Management Webinar, discuss your thoughts. What do you think of the “On Fire” and “In a Fire” categories? Could you see yourself using this tool?
What do you think of the Stanley Brown Safety Plan? Could you use this with numerous populations and settings?
Which do you think is more user-friendly—the PHQ-9 or C-SSRS? Explain your thinking.
What about this week’s content did you find to be of most interest?
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Answer
Sample Answer
Title: Suicide Risk Assessment and Safety Planning: Tools and Considerations
Suicide risk assessment and safety planning are crucial components of mental health care, aimed at identifying and addressing the needs of individuals who may be at risk of self-harm. Various tools and frameworks have been developed to support clinicians and individuals in assessing risk factors, developing safety plans, and promoting intervention strategies. In this essay, we will explore the effectiveness and applicability of specific tools and concepts related to suicide risk assessment and safety planning, as well as their implications for diverse populations and settings.
Emotional Fire Safety Plan:
The Emotional Fire Safety Plan presented in the Suicide Prevention and Management Webinar introduces the “On Fire” and “In a Fire” categories as a framework for individuals to identify escalating emotional distress and implement coping strategies. This approach provides a tangible and relatable metaphor for individuals to recognize their emotional state and take proactive steps to manage it. The visual imagery and simplicity of the concept make it a potentially effective tool for individuals to use in their daily lives. However, its applicability may vary depending on an individual’s cognitive and emotional capacity during moments of crisis.
Stanley Brown Safety Plan:
The Stanley Brown Safety Plan offers a structured framework for creating a personalized plan to address suicide risk. Its emphasis on identifying triggers, warning signs, coping strategies, social supports, and professional resources aligns with best practices in suicide prevention. The versatility of this plan allows for its use across diverse populations and settings, making it a valuable tool for clinicians working with individuals from various cultural backgrounds and with different levels of support.
PHQ-9 vs. C-SSRS:
The PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) and C-SSRS (Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale) serve distinct purposes in suicide risk assessment. The PHQ-9 focuses on assessing depressive symptoms, while the C-SSRS is specifically designed to evaluate suicidal ideation and behavior. Both tools are valuable in their respective domains; however, the C-SSRS may be considered more direct and targeted in assessing suicide risk, making it potentially more user-friendly for clinicians working specifically with suicide prevention.
Most Interesting Content:
Among the topics covered this week, the concept of safety planning and its role in empowering individuals at risk of suicide was particularly compelling. The emphasis on collaborative safety planning, involving the individual at risk in the process, aligns with a person-centered approach to care. This approach recognizes the autonomy and agency of individuals in managing their own safety, fostering a sense of control and empowerment in navigating their mental health challenges.
Conclusion:
Suicide risk assessment and safety planning are dynamic processes that require thoughtful consideration of the tools and frameworks available. The Emotional Fire Safety Plan and Stanley Brown Safety Plan offer innovative approaches to supporting individuals in crisis, while the PHQ-9 and C-SSRS serve as valuable instruments for assessing suicide risk. By embracing user-friendly tools and person-centered strategies, mental health professionals can better address the complex needs of diverse populations and settings, ultimately contributing to more effective suicide prevention efforts.
