Training is something that we have all experienced as healthcare professionals. We experienced training in our academic programs, our workplace settings, through continuing education requirements to maintain our licensing credentials, or as part of our professional development. We engage in all of this training in order to achieve a desired level of competence.
I’ve always loved comedy and gravitated towards individuals with humor and quick wit, whether in a friend, colleague, or comedian. I find that comedy and humor can be base, but in other moments incredibly stimulating intellectually and even emotionally powerful. Comedy can make connections between ideas and subjects that are seemingly unconnectable, it can short-circuit the brain into confusion and epiphany in a singular moment of time, dousing our brains with dopamine and contorting our bodies with intense laughter.
Welcome back to part two of our discussion about mindfulness-based interventions. Last time, I shared some of my experiences of leading mindfulness groups for Veterans. I also introduced the concept of a Zen koan as a way of approaching the question, “should I be teaching Veterans to meditate?” In the second part of this blog, I will discuss some additional considerations you might want to make when deciding if you should offer mindfulness to your clients. Before we launch into that, did you do your homework? Have you spent some time sitting with your koan since the last blog? If so, feel free to write any questions or considerations that came up during your practice in the comments section.
As educators in the field of suicidology, we have often trained and supervised providers in the conduct of suicide risk assessments. In general, we have noted that while providers are becoming more knowledgeable about how to perform a suicide risk assessment, they continue to experience challenges in how to best communicate about suicide risk. Based on our experiences, we would like to provide you with some practical recommendations when completing clinical documentation and when consulting with colleagues.
Air Force Guide for Suicide Risk Assessment, Management, and Treatment
Appendices for Air Force Guide for Suicide Risk Assessment, Management, and Treatment
It’s Wednesday afternoon, and I’m sitting, cross-legged, on a meditation cushion in the dayroom at a Veteran’s hospital. There are 13 Veterans sitting around the room; some of them are outpatients and some of them are participants in a residential PTSD program. Some of them are sitting on cushions, but most of them are in chairs. Another psychologist and a few psychology interns are there, too. We are all sitting in silence. About seven minutes into the final period of practice in our mindfulness group, the thought that I knew was coming finally presents itself, front and center, in my mind.