104 The Professional Counselor | Volume 14, Issue 1 that all students should receive the same training and teaching activities, ensuring that they were equally prepared to address the topic of suicide during their clinical courses and after graduation. The topic of self-care was addressed with participants, as this was the first opportunity students had to practice counseling skills within the program. This focus on self-care was an important step toward decreasing the potential of significant deep-rooted issues surfacing without sufficient time or training to properly address them. Students would learn about a new basic counseling skill each week and were instructed to incorporate that skill into the week’s role-play. In addition to reading about the skill in the course textbook, students were required to view weekly lecture videos and roleplays that specifically explained and demonstrated the skill that the students would be practicing that week during their role-play. For role-plays, participants were randomly paired with other participants within the same basic counseling skills course to practice basic foundational counseling skills. Each pair of students participated in five weekly role-plays as both the counselor and the client. Two of these role-plays occurred during class and three occurred outside of class. Each role-play occurred via Zoom and lasted approximately 10–15 minutes during class or 30 minutes when completed outside of class. For in-class role-plays, participants utilized breakout rooms in Zoom. Faculty provided each participant in the counselor role with feedback at the end of each role-play. Role-plays outside of the class required participants to send their partner a Zoom link and password. The role-plays were recorded in Zoom. Participants identified one role-play to submit to the instructor for formal assessment of their basic counseling skills and to provide formative feedback to each participant when acting in the counselor role. Preparation for Suicidal Ideation Role-Plays After the initial five role-plays were completed, participants prepared for role-plays that focused on crisis counseling. They read a chapter from their textbook on crisis counseling and various supplemental articles on working with a client with suicidal ideations. In addition, they viewed prerecorded role-plays on suicide assessment created by faculty in the program. Participants remained in the same randomly assigned pairs from earlier in the semester and then completed an additional five role-plays (one weekly), which allowed for them to gain experience working with a client with suicidal ideations. Suicidal Ideation Role-Plays Prior to beginning the role-plays, participants were provided with a brief synopsis for the topic of suicide and were also given the instructor’s phone number in case they needed immediate support or guidance. Like the previous role-plays, each of these lasted approximately 10–15 minutes during online classes or 30 minutes outside of class. Again, role-plays completed outside of class were recorded so that faculty could provide detailed feedback to students. The first in-class role-play was completed in a fishbowl format, allowing students in the class to observe. Instead of utilizing multiple breakout rooms, students remained in one room and observed one role-play at a time. This allowed students to learn vicariously from one another and to observe the ways that suicide screening, assessment, and intervention skills were demonstrated. The initial role-play also served as a way for participants in the counselor role to gain experience completing a suicide assessment while practicing other basic counseling skills. Four additional role-plays occurred and offered an opportunity for participants to continually reassess the risk of suicide of their partners, develop a safety plan, establish treatment goals, and practice other basic counseling skills. During the last role-play, participants in the counselor role conducted a termination session in which the counselor reviewed the client’s safety and treatment plans. Additionally, they reviewed the client’s goals and objectives and provided time for the client to reflect on the counseling experience.
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