| SUICIDE HOTLINE CERTIFIED |
| | C4 Provices Suicide HotLine and
Receives National Certification
Contact: Bruce Seitzer bruce.seitzer@c4chicago.org
Phone: 773.765.0790
Fax: 773.765.0839
January 23, 2004
Chicago, IL – Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death in this country, taking over 30,000 lives every year. The National Hopeline Network (1-800-SUICIDE) is the nation's only suicide prevention crisis hotline network linking certified providers under one phone number. Community Counseling Centers of Chicago, (C4) is the first agency to join the Network in Chicago and will assume responsibility for calls from the north side of Chicago beginning next week. Calls will be patched through the Network and received by C4’s Emergency Services staff through a dedicated phone line.
C4 has also been awarded certification by the American Association of Suicidology (AAS), as an approved Crisis Intervention Program. AAS is the standard setting organization for crisis services. Nationally, C4 is one of 156 other certified 24 hour crisis response organizations in the United States and Canada. Certification signifies that an organization has been evaluated during a site survey and other procedures and has met or exceeded specific standards in the following areas: administration, training, general service delivery, services in life-threatening crisis, ethical issues, community integration, and program evaluation.
C4 offers a comprehensive array of services: 24-hour crisis response and emergency assessment, short-term counseling, intensive psychotherapy and support groups, a variety of therapy modes, including art and expressive therapy, psychiatric and medication evaluations, medication clinics and education on medication monitoring, substance abuse treatment services, vocational services, parenting skills classes, case management and linkage to community resources, psychosocial rehabilitation services, representative payee and financial management services as well as services for survivors of sexual violence.
C4, which currently operates eight facilities, was established as a grassroots response to a federal policy that left to communities the task of developing services for people who were released from psychiatric hospitals into neighborhoods that were ill-equipped to provide for their needs. Since its inception, C4 has continually developed services to address a multitude of behavioral health and prominent social problems that exist in the community. With highly qualified staff who speak more than 21 languages and dialects, the agency receives citywide referrals and serves approximately 3,000 consumers monthly. Last year, C4 served 7,000 unduplicated consumers.
For more information on C4’s Emergency Services or the Suicide Hotline, please contact, Associate Director, Bruce Seitzer at 773.765.0790.
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