Which question is appropriate for assessing whether someone has made a suicide attempt in the past month?

Which question is appropriate for assessing whether someone has made a suicide attempt in the past month?

• A. Are you feeling sad?
• B. Have you made a suicide attempt in the last month?
• C. Do you often feel overwhelmed?
• D. Have you been having trouble sleeping?

Answer: (B)

The question "Have you made a suicide attempt in the last month?" directly addresses the specific behavior of interest: suicide attempts. It is explicit and clear inquiring about a concrete action, allowing the individual to provide a straightforward response regarding their recent experiences with suicidal behavior. This kind of direct question is an essential component of suicide risk assessment, as it seeks to identify past attempts, which can inform current risk levels and necessary interventions. Other options, while potentially relevant to understanding someone's emotional state, do not specifically assess past suicidal behaviors. Questions about feelings of sadness, being overwhelmed, or trouble sleeping may indicate underlying mental health issues but do not reveal whether an individual has engaged in suicidal attempts within the specified timeframe. Thus, they lack the specificity needed to evaluate recent suicide risk effectively.

The question "Have you made a suicide attempt in the last month?" directly addresses the specific behavior of interest: suicide attempts. It is explicit and clear inquiring about a concrete action, allowing the individual to provide a straightforward response regarding their recent experiences with suicidal behavior. This kind of direct question is an essential component of suicide risk assessment, as it seeks to identify past attempts, which can inform current risk levels and necessary interventions.

Other options, while potentially relevant to understanding someone's emotional state, do not specifically assess past suicidal behaviors. Questions about feelings of sadness, being overwhelmed, or trouble sleeping may indicate underlying mental health issues but do not reveal whether an individual has engaged in suicidal attempts within the specified timeframe. Thus, they lack the specificity needed to evaluate recent suicide risk effectively.