What are the four steps of crisis intervention commonly taught in mental health nursing?

• A. Diagnose the patient, provide sedation, discharge, and refer to outpatient clinic.
• B. Assess safety, provide containment and empathy, develop a plan, and arrange follow-up support.
• C. Assess safety, ignore emotions, escalate to involuntary admission, and restrict contact.
• D. Build rapport, set limits, prescribe therapy, and schedule follow-up.

Answer: (B)

Crisis intervention in mental health nursing centers on stabilizing someone in acute distress through four practical steps: assess safety, provide containment and empathy, develop a plan, and arrange follow-up support. Start with safety to determine if there is risk to self or others and to ensure immediate protection. Then bring containment and empathy to de-escalate the situation, using a calm, nonjudgmental, and supportive stance that helps the person feel heard and safe. Next, develop a plan focused on the present crisis—identify immediate needs, coping strategies, and concrete actions for stabilization in the short term. Finally, arrange follow-up support to ensure continuity of care, including referrals, appointments, and access to resources after the acute moment. This framework emphasizes safe, humane, and practical handling of the crisis, rather than diagnostic labeling, pharmacologic procedures, or restrictive practices. The other options either introduce steps not part of this standard sequence or advocate actions that are not aligned with least-restrictive, patient-centered crisis care.