De-escalation & Crisis Response equips behavioral health staff to respond safely and effectively when a client becomes agitated, distressed, or in crisis. Distress is part of this work, and your calm, skilled response can resolve a situation, while panic or control can escalate it. This course covers the cycle of escalation, verbal and nonverbal de-escalation, safety for everyone, recognizing a behavioral health crisis, and getting the right help — including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and Minnesota's county mobile crisis response teams. It treats de-escalation as connection and crisis as a team response. The throughline is calm: your steady presence is the most powerful de-escalation tool, and a crisis is never yours to handle alone.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the cycle of escalation
• Apply verbal and nonverbal de-escalation techniques
• Keep yourself and others safe during a crisis
• Recognize a behavioral health crisis
• Activate 988, county crisis teams, and 911 appropriately