| Course | PAC 120 Multicultural Advocacy |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 8 |
| Paper type | Suicide risk assessment |
| Length | About 1,212 words, 7 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Psychology and Addiction Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for PAC 120 Module 8
A Burden to Everyone: A Structured Suicide Risk Assessment and Safety Plan for a Man in His Fifties Who Drinks Alone
Student Name
Psychology and Addiction Studies Program, Aspen University
PAC 120: Multicultural Advocacy
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
A Burden to Everyone: A Structured Suicide Risk Assessment and Safety Plan for a Man in His Fifties Who Drinks Alone
Gary is fifty-six. He worked for twenty-eight years as a machinist at a plant on Milwaukee's south side until it closed last spring. His wife filed for divorce in the fall, and he now lives alone in a small apartment. He has two adult children, a son in Madison and a daughter with a new baby in Chicago. He enrolled at Northside, the same made-up Milwaukee agency, after a fall on icy steps while intoxicated. Near the end of his fourth session, while talking about his daughter's baby, he said quietly, "They'd be better off without me. I'm a burden to everyone now." This paper describes the suicide risk assessment that followed and the safety plan we built together. Gary and Northside are composites for teaching, while every study cited is real.
Why Substance Use Raises Concern
Wilcox et al. (2004) reviewed cohort studies that followed people with alcohol and drug use disorders over time and compared their suicide rates with those of the general population. Suicide rates were roughly ten times higher among people with alcohol use disorders and higher still among people with opioid use disorders and those who used multiple drugs. Alcohol contributes to risk in several ways: it worsens depression, damages relationships and work and reduces inhibition in the moment. Gary's alcohol use disorder alone justified careful attention to his statement.
Understanding the Statement Through Theory
Van Orden et al. (2010) set out the interpersonal theory of suicide. The theory proposes that the desire for suicide arises when two states occur together: thwarted belongingness, the sense of being alone and disconnected from others, and perceived burdensomeness, the belief that one's existence is a burden on others. When people hold both states and feel hopeless about them changing, suicidal desire may develop. But desire alone, the theory holds, is not enough for a lethal attempt. That also requires acquired capability: a reduced fear of death and a higher tolerance for pain, which develop through repeated exposure to painful or frightening experiences.
Gary's situation fits the theory closely. His belonging has been thwarted: he lost the coworkers he saw daily for decades, his marriage and the home where his family gathered, and he now drinks alone. His statement that he is a burden to everyone is perceived burdensomeness in his own words. Regarding capability, Gary is a lifelong deer hunter, comfortable with firearms, and he owns a hunting rifle that he keeps in his apartment. He has also had several serious falls while drinking.
The Structured Screening
I used the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale, with my supervisor present in the room. Posner et al. (2011) evaluated the scale in three multisite studies and found that it showed good validity, distinguished among levels of ideation and behavior and was sensitive to change. It asks about the wish to be dead, active thoughts of suicide, thoughts of method, intent and plan, and past suicidal behavior.
Gary answered yes to wishing he were dead and yes to having thoughts of killing himself in the past month, several times a week, usually late at night after drinking. He said he had thought about his rifle. He denied intent to act and denied having a plan with a time or place, saying, "I couldn't do that to my kids, not with the baby." He reported no past attempts but described a night in December when he sat with the rifle in his lap for an hour. My supervisor and I treated that night as a significant warning sign, since it came close to preparatory behavior.
Weighing Risk and Protection
Taken together, my supervisor and I judged Gary's risk as moderate to high: active ideation with a known method and access, recent warning behavior and an alcohol use disorder, balanced by strong reasons for living and engagement in care. He did not require emergency hospitalization, because he denied intent, agreed to a plan and had people who could help, but he needed an immediate safety plan, restricted access to his rifle and close follow-up.
| Factor | Type | In Gary's life |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol use disorder | Risk | Daily drinking, most heavily at night |
| Thwarted belongingness | Risk | Job, marriage and coworkers lost; lives alone |
| Perceived burdensomeness | Risk | "I'm a burden to everyone now" |
| Access to a firearm | Risk | Hunting rifle kept in his apartment |
| Recent warning behavior | Risk | Sat with the rifle for an hour in December |
| Middle-aged man, recent losses | Risk | Divorce and job loss in the past year |
| Children and new grandchild | Protective | Named as his reason not to act |
| Engagement in treatment | Protective | Has attended every session; disclosed to his counselor |
The Safety Plan
Stanley and Brown (2012) described the safety planning intervention, in which client and clinician sit together and write a short plan, step by step, in the client's own words. It has six steps, and Gary and I completed each one.
First, warning signs: late nights, the second six-pack, looking at pictures of the old house. Second, internal coping: walking to the lake, watching a Brewers replay, calling his son. Third, people and places for distraction: the diner where his old shift crew still meets on Saturday mornings. Fourth, people to ask for help: his brother Dave and his son. Fifth, professionals and crisis services: Northside's number, the county crisis line and 988, the national number for suicide and crisis calls and texts. Sixth, making the environment safe: Gary agreed to let his brother keep the rifle and its ammunition at Dave's house until Gary and his counselor agree it can come back, and he agreed not to keep liquor in the apartment overnight.
The rifle step required care. For Gary, hunting is part of who he is, and he heard the request at first as being treated like a child. I framed it as temporary and as something many hunters do for one another during hard stretches. He called Dave from my office before he left.
Culture and Masculinity
Gary grew up believing that men handle their own problems and do not complain. That belief made his statement in session significant, and it shaped the plan. He was more willing to accept help framed as practical, such as his brother holding the rifle, than help framed as emotional. The diner with his old crew offered belonging on terms that fit him. Counselors working with men like Gary should expect understatement and treat quiet statements seriously.
Follow-Up and Documentation
Gary was scheduled for a session in two days and a phone check the next evening. I documented his exact words, the scale results, the factors weighed, the risk judgment, the safety plan, the call to his brother and my supervisor's participation. With his consent, I also referred him for an evaluation for depression.
Conclusion
Gary's statement that he was a burden to everyone opened a conversation that may have saved his life. Wilcox, Conner and Caine explain why his drinking raises risk, Van Orden and colleagues explain why burdensomeness, lost belonging and access to his rifle matter, Posner and colleagues support the scale used to measure his ideation and Stanley and Brown provide the steps of the plan he now carries in his wallet.
References
Posner, K., Brown, G. K., Stanley, B., Brent, D. A., Yershova, K. V., Oquendo, M. A., Currier, G. W., Melvin, G. A., Greenhill, L., Shen, S., & Mann, J. J. (2011). The Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale: Initial validity and internal consistency findings from three multisite studies with adolescents and adults. American Journal of Psychiatry, 168(12), 1266-1277. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2011.10111704
Stanley, B., & Brown, G. K. (2012). Safety planning intervention: A brief intervention to mitigate suicide risk. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 19(2), 256-264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpra.2011.01.001
Van Orden, K. A., Witte, T. K., Cukrowicz, K. C., Braithwaite, S. R., Selby, E. A., & Joiner, T. E., Jr. (2010). The interpersonal theory of suicide. Psychological Review, 117(2), 575-600. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018697
Wilcox, H. C., Conner, K. R., & Caine, E. D. (2004). Association of alcohol and drug use disorders and completed suicide: An empirical review of cohort studies. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 76(Suppl.), S11-S19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2004.08.003
PAC 120 Module 8 instructions, in plain terms
The final module of PAC 120 typically wants a suicide risk assessment that examines one client's danger in a structured way, guided by theory and a validated instrument, ending in a safety plan. Follow the Module 8 wording Aspen gives you; Gary is a teaching composite. Explain why the client's situation raised concern, quoting what was said. Use a validated screening instrument and report its results. Apply a theory of suicide to explain the risk. Weigh risk factors against protective factors. Build a safety plan using a recognized model, including access to lethal means. Address culture and identity, document carefully and cite every source in APA 7. Write about suicide in plain, nonsensational language.
How this PAC 120 Module 8 example is built
Gary says, near the end of a session, that his kids would be better off without a father who is a burden to everyone. Wilcox, Conner and Caine's Drug and Alcohol Dependence review explains elevated risk in substance use disorders. Van Orden and colleagues' Psychological Review article supplies thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness and acquired capability, each found in Gary's history. Posner and colleagues' American Journal of Psychiatry study supports the Columbia scale, on which Gary reports active ideation without a plan. A table weighs eight factors. Stanley and Brown's Cognitive and Behavioral Practice article provides six steps, completed with Gary, including storing his rifle with his brother. Follow-up and documentation close it.
PAC 120 Module 8 rubric: what earns full marks
Suicide assessment papers are marked for structure, accuracy and safety. This example quotes the statement that triggered assessment, uses a validated instrument and reports its findings in the instrument's own terms. The interpersonal theory is applied to specific facts in Gary's life rather than summarized. The risk and protective factor table supports a reasoned overall judgment rather than a single score. The safety plan follows Stanley and Brown's six steps in order and addresses the firearm directly, which instructors treat as essential, and it records who now holds the rifle. Attention to masculinity norms, follow-up timing and documentation shows the thoroughness the topic demands, and the language stays plain and respectful throughout.
Common PAC 120 Module 8 mistakes, and how to avoid them
The most serious weakness in these papers is avoiding the direct question. Research has not found that a direct question about suicide raises risk, so ask it plainly, in words the client would use. Another weakness is relying on a single checklist score; combine a validated instrument with clinical judgment and theory. Always address access to lethal means, especially firearms, and do it collaboratively. Build the safety plan with the client in their own words rather than handing them a form. Consider culture and identity, including how gender norms may shape help-seeking. Plan follow-up within days, not weeks, and say who will make the call. Document what was asked, what was said and what was decided. Consult a supervisor. Use plain language and avoid describing methods in detail.
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This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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PAC 120 Module 8 questions, answered
What does PAC 120 Module 8 usually ask for?
Aspen's PAC 120 ends with assessing suicide potential, so a structured risk assessment with a theory, an instrument and a safety plan is typical. Read the Module 8 prompt.
Does substance use increase suicide risk?
Yes. Wilcox, Conner and Caine's review of cohort studies found suicide rates many times higher among people with alcohol and drug use disorders than in the general population.
What is the interpersonal theory of suicide?
Van Orden and colleagues propose that suicidal desire arises from thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness, and that lethal attempts also require an acquired capability for suicide.
Where can I find a free PAC 120 Module 8 sample paper?
Find the full paper here: a structured suicide risk assessment and safety plan for a client with an alcohol use disorder.
What is a safety plan?
A short written plan, from Stanley and Brown, that moves from spotting one's own warning signs through coping alone, being around others, asking named people for help and calling professionals, and ends with removing lethal means.