Working Online with Suicidal Clients in the Age of COVID
Video
with
Victor Yalom, PhD, John Sommers-Flanagan, PhD
Video

Working Online with Suicidal Clients in the Age of COVID

How has the rapid shift to online therapy affected the way we work with suicidal clients? Victor Yalom and John Sommers-Flanagan discuss how to effectively engage, assess and monitor suicidal clients in the age of online therapy and the impact that COVID has had on suicidality.   Video length: 16m
Buy a Membership
COURSE DETAILS

Overview

Changes brought about by the global pandemic have increased feelings of uncertainty, distress, and isolation for suicidal clients as well as the clinicians who work with them. In this Mastery in Minutes video, Victor Yalom interviews renowned expert John Sommers-Flanagan about working remotely with suicidal clients and how COVID has affected suicidality. Their conversation sheds light on some special considerations clinicians need to address when working remotely and guidance on building strong therapeutic relationships in an online therapy space as well as ways in which remote therapy can actually enhance work with suicidal clients.

By watching this interview, you will learn important tools for building a strong working alliance despite the distance of teletherapy and how you can better help clients reduce their distress and develop tools to cope more effectively during these troubling times.

About the Experts

Victor Yalom, PhD
Expert

Victor Yalom, PhD

Victor Yalom, PhD (1959-2026) was the founder and chief cartoonist of Psychotherapy.net, producing more than 100 videos in his 30+ years there. He also maintained a busy private practice in San Francisco, conducted workshops in existential-humanistic and group therapy in the US, Mexico, and China, and lead consultation groups for therapists. Victor retired from Psychotherapy.net in 2025.

View full profile
John Sommers-Flanagan, PhD
Expert

John Sommers-Flanagan, PhD

John Sommers-Flanagan, PhD, is a professor of counselor education at the University of Montana. In addition to teaching, research, and supervision, John also has a small independent practice. Previously, he was a clinical psychologist and mental health consultant with Trapper Creek Job Corps and served as executive director of Families First Parenting Programs from 1995 to 2003. John was also a co-host of a radio talk-show on Montana Public Radio titled, “What is it with Men?” Primarily specializing in working…

View full profile

Disclosures

Victor Yalom and John Sommers-Flanagan were compensated for their contribution. None of their books or additional offerings are required for any of the Psychotherapy.net content. Should such materials be referenced, it is as an additional resource. 

This Disclosure Statement has been designed to meet accreditation standards; Psychotherapy.net does its best to mitigate potential conflicts of interest and eliminate bias in all areas of content. Psychotherapy.net offers training for cost but has no financial or other relationships to disclose. Additionally, there is no commercial support for this activity. None of the planners or any employee at Psychotherapy.net who has worked on this educational activity has relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies.

Psychotherapy.net defines ineligible companies as those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. There is no minimum financial threshold; individuals must disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies. We ask that all contributors disclose any and all financial relationships they have with any ineligible companies whether the individual views them as relevant to the education or not. Each experts’ specific disclosures can be found in their biography.