CAMS FAQs

CAMS, or the “Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality,” is a clinical philosophy of care. It’s a therapeutic framework that assesses and treats a patient’s suicidal risk. Its flexible approach enables the effective application across theoretical orientations and disciplines, as well as treatment settings and modalities for a wide range of suicidal patients.  CAMS is a “Well Supported” treatment by CDC criteria, it decreases hopelessness and increases hope, and is proven to resolve the patient’s suicidal ideation in as few as 6 to 8 sessions.

Evidence-based treatments like CAMS are central to Zero Suicide implementations. CAMS consistently contributes to all seven elements in the Zero Suicide Toolkit^SM, with significant contributions to the last four elements — training, identifying, engaging, and, most importantly, treating — individuals at risk of suicide in the following ways:

• Requires a different kind of leadership for preventing and treating patients experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors
• Affordable, scalable, and customized training options across treatment modalities
• Identifies suicidal risk early on to keep the patient out of the hospital
• Collaboratively engages both the patient and the provider as active participants in the patient’s treatment
• Proven effectiveness in treating suicidal ideation in 6-8 sessions
• Supports transition by tracking a patient’s risk for suicide until resolution

CAMS is a proven clinical intervention that reliably and effectively treats patient-defined suicidal drivers, leading to rapid reductions in suicidal ideation, overall symptom distress, depression, and hopelessness. In addition, there are promising data for decreasing suicide attempts and self-harm behaviors. These results stem from over 30 years of clinical trials, 7 published randomized controlled trials (RCTs), several RCTs currently in process and two meta-analyses.

CAMS is a key part of the Zero Suicide TREAT step as it is one of the few evidence-based treatments for people with serious thoughts of suicide. Please contact us at info@cams-care.com to learn more about how other organizations have successfully integrated CAMS into their Zero Suicide implementation.

All CAMS-care authorized trainers have worked extensively with Dr. Jobes and receive regular updates on applying the latest CAMS research to the training. While we strongly encourage you to receive training from a CAMS-authorized trainer, we understand that this may not be practical for some organizations and countries so we have developed a CAMS Internal Trainer designation that allows a clinician steeped in CAMS knowledge to train other employees within your organization. For more information about the program, please contact andrew@cams-care.com.

Yes, CAMS is an excellent evidenced-based suicide-specific clinical intervention that is well suited for suicide prevention efforts funded by GLS. We’ve completed many CAMS trainings for state organizations and Native American behavioral health providers over the past several years.

Please complete our Inquiry Form for more information, and a member of our team will contact you as soon as possible.

Yes, the SSF is available in other languages. CAMS-care grants access to clinicians who have completed proper CAMS-care training on a case-by-case basis.

There are two ways to access SSF copies. The first is through purchase and ownership of the Guilford Press book Managing Suicidal Risk: A Collaborative Approach 3rd Ed, which enables a provider to access a web-based version of the tool or to photocopy the document directly from the book per the limited copyright permission. Alternatively, you may access the SSF through your CAMS-care account.

The Suicide Status Forms (Initial, Interim and Final Sessions) are now available in many EMRs including Oracle, Netsmart, NextGen, Streamline, DrCloudEHR, and Welligent. Please contact andrew@cams-care.com to find out if your EMR is working with CAMS-care.

We are thrilled you’re considering joining our community of thousands of CAMS Trained™ providers effectively utilizing CAMS to reduce suicidal ideation. We recommend you complete your CAMS training in the following order:

• Become CAMS Trained to build your foundational skills and gain confidence to use the CAMS Framework^® in your practice with your next patient. CAMS Trained Packages
• Expand your knowledge with Advanced CAMS training in different settings. This includes CAMS-4Teens^® for at-risk adolescents and families and CAMS Brief Intervention for impactful shorter consultations.
• Demonstrate deep subject-matter expertise to earn the prestigious CAMS Certified™ designation as a CAMS Approved Clinic, Consultant, and more.

All CAMS training offerings are flexible and tailored toward your needs. Please reach out to us to discuss your needs.

Mental health providers in individual therapy, emergency departments, and inpatient and intensive outpatient programs (including telehealth) benefit greatly from CAMS. Our training is also appropriate for case managers and social workers, school counselors, administrators, and emergency or crisis responders—especially those who make risk determinations and do safety planning. Lastly, we strongly encourage students practicing under supervision in the above areas to learn and use CAMS.

• Foundational Video Course
• The CAMS book, Managing Suicidal Risk: A Collaborative Approach, 3rd Edition
• CAMS Role-Play Training
• CAMS Consultation Calls.

Research has shown clinicians adhere to CAMS with their first patient within four sessions.

Yes, senior CAMS-care consultants will help you with guidance on the successful implementation of CAMS. Our team works with states, local governments, community behavioral health systems and  large mental health organizations to assist you with rolling out CAMS as part of your suicide prevention initiative.

Yes, we have a popular 3 hour introductory training “Exploring the Problem of Suicide and the Evidence-based Solutions” which groups planning on treating patients find helpful to educate a wide audience. Please complete the inquiry form, and we will be happy to contact you.

Dr. Jobes has been involved in the Zero Suicide movement since its inception. CAMS is a key part of Zero Suicide initiatives, recognized as one of the few evidence-based approaches to treating suicidal risk.  Please feel free to contact Training Solutions for a free initial consultation with one of expert consultants on integrating CAMS into your Zero Suicide system of care.

Yes, many organizations opt to complete foundational training in CAMS by having staff read the book, take the Foundational Video Course, and attend a series of consultation calls. We have also split our Online Role-Play Training into half-day sessions to accommodate organizations’ needs.

Please complete our inquiry form, and we will be happy to contact you to discuss the available options.

While the Foundational Video Course provides an excellent introduction and overview of CAMS, the 3^rd Edition of the CAMS book is the primary source and a reference guide for detailed information and instruction regarding CAMS. The book is a requirement for the CAMS Trained designation.

To purchase one or multiple training seats for your 5 colleagues (as many as up to 20 people), visit the Training Platform and select the CAMS Trained Packages option. On the right hand side, click the “team training” option to purchase and assign your desired number of seats to your team. You can also use this tab if you are purchasing on behalf of someone else.

For groups of 50 or more, the price per person to become CAMS Trained drops. Please complete our inquiry form and we will be happy to share pricing with you. 

The online course is intended to be an individual, not a group training experience.  Group viewing is a violation of the terms of use.

An individual has access to the Foundational Video Course for 60 days.  We recommend you or your trainees watch the Foundational Video before attending a Role-Play Training to become familiar with how a clinician and patient collaborate on a treatment plan.  The 3^rd edition of the CAMS book then becomes your reference manual when you have questions about CAMS or you can join any of our CAMS consultation calls to pose your questions to one of our experts.

We currently offer CE credits for counselors, psychologists, and social workers. Other clinicians may ask their professional licensing agents for approval on a course-by-course basis. See all CE offerings.

We offer online Role-Play Training for individuals every month.  Please see Role-Play Training for individuals for the latest schedule.

Yes, we have trained groups of less than ten attendees and we encourage you to sign up multiple individuals for the Online Role-Play Training. Please complete our inquiry form with information about your organization and we will be happy to contact you to discuss the options available.

A couple of the most popular federal funding grants, offered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA), include: the Garrett Lee Smith grant and the Zero Suicide grant.

Yes! CAMS is here to support your grant-writing process, including federal, state, and local funding opportunities. Please visit our Grant Writing and Consulting Page for information you can use to complete your grant applications, including research justifying the use of the evidence-based practice with your community of focus.

Yes! In addition to grant writing, we offer consultation services in clinical suicide prevention and treatment, systems of care, and research. Please contact our Training Solutions team for more information.