Suicide is increasingly widespread in South Africa and is considered to constitute a serious public health problem. It is not only the most common emergency encountered by mental health care professionals but also has the distinction of being one of the few potentially fatal psychological conditions. The accurate determination of suicide risk in clinical practice is difficult. Despite vast amounts of research, no one assessment tool or method, when applied to individual clients, has been demonstrated to be ultimately superior in helping clinicians to accurately estimate risk. A clinician's failure to adequately assess suicide risk may result in morbidity or mortality, and has the added complication of leaving the clinician to face negative emotional, personal, professional, and legal consequences. This article illustrates how research findings and empirical studies have been utilised to formulate a Suicide Risk Assessment Interview Schedule (SRAIS) designed to assist the clinician to make a thorough assessment of suicide risk by avoiding errors of omission. Two case vignettes are included to illustrate how the SRAIS has been used to guide the process of risk assessment and management.
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