A Single Crisis Session

Lenora is a 23-year-old woman who was transported to the hospital during the early morning hours by her sister, Mary. Lenora presented as visibly upset, very angry, shaking, disheveled, and crying uncontrollably. Mary told the attending nurse that Lenora had been out drinking earlier that night and met a man. Mary explained that he was buying Lenora drinks and at one point must have slipped her a “roofie.” Lenora did not recall what took place, but when the drug wore off she found herself alone in a hotel room several blocks from the bar and unclothed. Lenora reported that she was sexually assaulted and raped several times. Mary also shared that Lenora “has been drinking a lot for the past 6 months” following the termination of a long-term relationship. You are a substance abuse counselor working for a local mental health agency that contracts with the hospital for evening and weekend crisis response calls.

Discussion Questions

1. Explore how you could integrate the task model of crisis assessment and intervention (see Table 1.1).

2. What would be the first thing you would do to address this crisis situation?