Introduction
Date Course Created: June 2026
Join us for an exploration of how clients’ challenges with chronic pain face unique and complex suicide risk factors, shaped by physical suffering, risk of opioid dependence, and existential distress. The course equips clinicians with the necessary tools to recognize and address suicidality within this population using trauma-informed, ethically grounded interventions. It provides a framework for bridging the gap between pain management and suicide prevention, ensuring that care approaches honor both physical and emotional suffering with compassion and effectiveness.
By integrating perspectives from Polyvagal Theory, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and somatic therapies, participants will explore robust strategies for evidence-based risk assessment, crisis response, and safety planning. Through case studies and clinical insights, this training delves into the challenging overlap of physical suffering, the risk of opioid dependence, and profound existential distress. You will leave better equipped to collaborate across disciplines and provide care that compassionately addresses both body and mind!
In addition to the formal course objectives listed below, this training includes:
- Ethics as a lens through which the assessment and safety aspects of these clients is viewed.
- An opportunity to define how to ethically share information through continuity of care and interdisciplinary collaboration with medical, spiritual, and pain reduction experts.
- A review of evidence-based assessments to identify underlying mental health/substance use disorder issues that may be prevalent when dealing with issues of chronic pain.
- A large resource of handouts: Mandatory Disclosure Checklist, Assessment Checklist, Safety Action Plan, Sample Behavior Agreement, Continuity of Care Checklist, Action Plan for Prevention and Recovery (SAMHSA), and a Gratitude and Glimmer Toolbox.
This is a 2.75-CE noninteractive, self-paced online video course delivered in home study format via an industry-standard online learning platform.
Agenda
00:00 – 00:30 → Introduction, Defining & Assessing Chronic Pain, Emotional Dysregulation, Client Ambivalence
00:30 – 01:00 → Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Co-occurring Mental Health Issues, Animals in Therapy
01:00 – 01:45 → Understanding Pain-Driven Suicidality, Collaborative Planning, Case Applications, Evidence-Based Assessments
01:45 – 02:15 → Distinguishing Between Death Ideation and Suicidal Ideation, Clinical Discernment, Intervention Pathways
02:15 – 02:46 → Documentation, Positive Glimmers, Crisis Response Planning Essentials
Objectives
This training will provide participants clinical knowledge and tools to:
-
After completing this training, participants will be able to recognize the complex interplay between chronic pain, opioid use, and suicidality, including key risk factors and warning signs.- After completing this training, participants will be able to assess existential distress in clients challenged by chronic pain and integrate trauma-informed approaches into suicide prevention efforts.
- After completing this training, participants will be able to identify ethical and clinical challenges in managing suicidality within clients struggling with opioid dependence, including how to balance harm reduction with safety planning, risk assessment, and crisis management.
- After completing this training, participants will be able to apply intervention strategies that combine somatic, psychological, and systemic approaches to enhance resilience and mitigate suicide risk in these clients.
Target Audience:
Professional Counselors, Clinical Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, Psychologists, Psychiatrists, and anyone providing services in the behavioral health care industry.
Instructional Level: Intermediate
Instructor(s): Jodi Ann Geis-Crowder, MS, LPC, ACS
Material Author(s): Jodi Ann Geis-Crowder, MS, LPC, ACS
For additional information about this course, the instructors, or the material authors, please contact Content Assistance at content@onlinececredits.com.
Course Materials & Delivery Method:
- Course Materials – The course is composed of a recorded presentation and written materials (e.g. a slide deck and/or other worksheets, manuals, or handouts as provided by the instructor). The slide deck and any additional worksheets or handouts (as provided by the instructor) are made available inside the Lesson module after a course is purchased.
- Delivery Method – This course is a recorded asynchronous, self-paced webinar training, and there is no access time limit or due date to complete it once enrolled. The enrolled learner will stream the recorded presentation and view the materials from their internet connected device via an industry-standard online learning platform.
CE Approvals:
National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC)
Online CE Credits has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6795. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Online CE Credits is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB)
Mind Works Professional Education, Inc. DBA Online CE Credits, #1974, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: July 23, 2025 – July 23, 2028. Social workers completing this course receive 2.75 clinical continuing education credits.
Other Helpful Information:
Refund & Cancellation Policy – You may review this policy at any time by clicking here.- Accessibility Accommodations – If you require a reasonable accommodation for any reason, please email your request to cc@onlinececredits.com.
- Course Completion Requirements – 1.) View the entire Lesson module (accessible from the main course page), to include the embedded and/or linked presentation video(s), slide deck, additional materials, and/or links to any shared video clip(s) that may have been edited from the presentation video(s) to comply with copyright laws. 2.) Click into the Quiz module accessible from either the main course page or the Lesson page and complete the Quiz with an 80% or better pass rate. 3.) Complete the Course Evaluation – you’ll be sent to the Evaluation automatically once you successfully pass the Quiz.
- Posttest Requirements – You must answer 80% or more of the Quiz questions correctly to pass. If you fail to pass the first time, you may attempt the quiz again until you are able to pass with a score of 80% or better. Quizzes are graded instantly and automatically by the learning management system once your attempt is submitted.
- Certificate of Completion – Certificates of Completion are automatically generated – downloadable from your Dashboard and emailed to you – once you view the Lesson Materials and complete the Quiz and the Course Evaluation.
- How to Enroll – Login to the website first if you already have a user account. If not, you will create your permanent user account login information during course enrollment. Select the appropriate course library using the top menu of the website. Once inside your chosen course library, find and select your desired course to be taken to the main course page. Click the button on the top banner to enroll. When the order window pops up, enter your details and place your order. You will be emailed an enrollment confirmation message, and you’ll be sent to a landing page instructing you how to begin your newly enrolled course.
- System Requirements:
- Recommended Devices: Desktop, Laptop, or Tablet computer. (Note: Our platform is mobile responsive and may be fully accessed from a connected smartphone).
- Suggested Browsers: Updated version of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Apple Safari.
- Recommended Network: Home wi-fi, ethernet, or a public wi-fi with VPN (Note: agency or corporate networks are often equipped with restrictive firewalls that may adversely impact your experience on our platform).
- Recommended speed/bandwidth: Minimum download speed > 20Mbps and minimum upload speed > 6Mbps.