This book teaches helping professionals the skills and procedures they need to know to handle crises. Gilliland and James present a six-step model that gives students and practitioners a systematic way of dealing with people in crisis: Defining the Problem; Ensuring Client Safety; Providing Support; Examining Alternatives; Making Plans; and Obtaining Commitment. Upon this model the authors then build specific strategies for handling a myriad of different crisis situations - in many cases providing the dialogue the nurse, minister, police officer, counselor, or other practitioner might have with the person in crisis.