Important information for existing users:
We have transitioned TDC to a new website. If you started your Exam Prep or CE course(s) before Sep 22, 2026, you can continue with your current course(s) at: mar2027.therapistdevelopmentcenter.com
Have questions?
Visit our Website Update FAQs.

Law & Ethics Suicide Assessment & Treatment (6 CE hours)

Course Summary

This course provides mental health professionals with the knowledge required to meet the standard of care when working with clients experiencing suicidal ideation. Grounded in the HEART model—Humanistic, Emotionally Aware, Ethically Aligned, Responsible, Trauma-Informed, and Transformative—the course integrates Gestalt therapy principles with legal and ethical requirements. 

This course provides therapists with: 
  • A review of the core competencies required to meet the standard of care in suicide assessment and treatment. 
  • A self-assessment tool that will allow you to honestly reflect on your knowledge, skills, and abilities in the core competencies, and develop a professional development plan to address any deficits. 
  • The Ethics in Action Tool for treating suicidality is an innovative resource that helps therapists identify and address potential ethical dilemmas in their cases. 
  • Clinical vignettes used to demonstrate the use of the Ethics in Action Tool in clinical practice and supervision.

Learn More

Learning objectives

As a result of participating in this training, participants will be able to:
  • Explain the legal and ethical issues relevant to the assessment and treatment of suicidality.
  • Describe how a humanistic approach to the assessment and treatment of suicidality can help support clinicians in meeting the standard of care.
  • List professional development activities that you can engage in to address identified deficits in the ten competencies required for the assessment and treatment of suicidality.

Course outline

  • Lecture 1: Course Overview (44 Minutes)
  • Lecture 2: Standard of Care (33 Minutes)
  • Lecture 3: Competence Self-Assessment (57 Minutes)
  • Lecture 4: Ethics in Action Tool (1 Hour 44 Minutes)
  • Lecture 5: Clinical Vignettes (1 Hour 5 Minutes)

Instructors

Amanda Rowan, LCSW, Founder and CEO of TDC
Amanda Rowan, LCSW | Founder and CEO
Amanda Rowan is an LCSW and the founder and CEO of the Therapist Development Center. Amanda graduated with honors from Dartmouth College where she majored in Neuroscience. She earned her Master’s in Social Welfare at UCLA. Since founding the Therapist Development Center in 2008, Amanda has prepared more than 100,000 therapists nationwide to pass their state licensing exams. She is a certified Gestalt Therapist who has worked with a wide variety of clients across a range of settings over the past 20 years. She is a highly effective instructor who has a passion for collaborating with seasoned therapists who understand what works because they do it every day.  
Michelle Seely, LMFT,
Michelle Seely, MFT | VP of Professional Development & Co-Chair of Faculty
Michelle Seely (LMFT) is a licensed therapist with a private practice in Los Angeles. She is an experienced teacher of gestalt and meditation and has trained and supervised licensed therapists and associates in the US and internationally. She has served on the core faculty at the Pacific Gestalt Institute for over a decade. She is a contributing author to the academic anthology, The Relational Heart of Gestalt Therapy (Routledge 2022). She was trained to teach Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) by the program’s developers, Kristin Neff, and Chris Germer, and has taught privately and with InsightLA Meditation. She is president emeritus of the Gestalt Therapy Institute of Los Angeles (GTILA), where she also served on the executive board for eight years.

Who should take this course

This course is appropriate for mental health clinicians at all levels of experience to work more effectively with clients experiencing varying degrees of suicidal ideation.

CE Credits

6 hours

Price

Course format

Asynchronous: recorded and reading-based

How to access this course

Once registered, the course will appear in the participant’s Study Center, where the participant can download the handouts and listen to the recorded audio lectures.

Certificate of Completion 

The participant will be able to print their certificate of completion immediately after scoring 80% or higher on the posttest and completing the course evaluation.

Grievance & Refund Policy

To view our grievance policy, click here. To review our refund policy and terms of use, click here.

ADA Needs

We are happy to accommodate your ADA needs, please email: help@therapistdevelopmentcenter.com.

Date Published

June 2026

Contact Information

Therapist Development Center email: help@therapistdevelopmentcenter.com
Empty space, drag to resize
*Please check your state's specific requirements.
Therapist Development Center, provider #1449, 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: 5/30/24-5/30/27. Social workers completing this course receive 6 clinical continuing education credits.*

The Therapist Development Center, LLC, is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #SW-0857.

*In California, the BBS accepts courses that are approved under ASWB ACE for all licensees.

Stay in the loop! 
Sign up for occasional TDC emails for updates, new course announcements, and opportunities to participate in surveys that help shape future courses.