De-escalation: Mental Health Crises

De-escalating mental health crises means responding in specific ways to keep stress levels low. Severe mental health symptoms can be upsetting and stressful for the helper so it’s important to stay focused on not contributing more conflict and dysregulation. By paying careful attention to what the person reveals in their actions and words, interventions can be crafted to reduce agitation. The key objective of the class is to practice responses that accord with best practices from the behavioral health field and are designed to calm the situation as quickly as possible.

• Examine strategies to ground oneself

• Identify the person’s need and specific concern

• Consider the role of nonverbal communication

• Practice verbal strategies to respond to severe mental health symptoms

MN Board of Social Work

2.0 CEUs (CEP-275)

MN Board of Nursing

This activity has been designed to meet the Minnesota Board of Nursing continuing education requirements. However, the nurse is responsible for determining whether this activity meets the requirements for acceptable continuing education.