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Wekstein emphasizes that suicide prevention, identification, and treatment is multidisciplinary. He has prepared an overview where, perhaps, a multiauthored text covering historical, statistical, psychoanalytical, and sociological aspects is really needed.
An informative section of the handbook concerns the extremely high rate of psychopathology among medical students, physicians, and psychiatrists. These three groups (which include women) have at least double the general population suicide rate. The statistics reinforce the reviewer's opinion that individual and group psychotherapy should be a condition for admission to medical school and a condition for graduation.
Wekstein also clarifies normal suicidal attitudes in contrast to morbid attitudes. He suggests that acute psychosis may be a suicide preventive, whereas, in the recovery phase, failure to cope may signify a danger period. Although schizophrenics do not have a higher suicide rate than others, the psychoneurotic is at risk.
A section devoted to workshop problems is taken from the suicide prevention training manual of the American Association of Suicidology. The references are valuable. The handbook is recommended as an overview and quick reference.