ABSTRACT
Non-suicidal self-injury, the deliberate destruction of body tissue without suicidal intent, is highly prevalent and a significant risk factor for suicide among adolescents.
The purpose of this policy is to outline the actions to be taken by teachers and other school staff in response to students who have self-injured or are suspected of self-injuring, including guidelines on identifying the warning signs of self-injury, the roles and responsibilities of different school staff members, when and how to refer students suspected of self-injury, screening for risk and referral of students to external mental health services, conducting follow-up risk assessments and working with parents, managing wounds, and limiting contagion of self-injury in schools. This policy also intends to distinguish self-injury from suicide and detail how this policy should be used in conjunction with school policy on suicide.
