If the person has known anger issues, aggressive behaviors, or hostility:

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  confer with the family or physician to determine whether the interview will upset the person before arranging home contacts with the mentally ill, and

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  arrange for the presence of a third party, or another employee, if possible.

If the person becomes angry, aggressive, or hostile, use local office guidelines as a supplement to the following actions:

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  use good listening skills;

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  speak simply, slowly, clearly, calmly, and acceptingly;

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  avoid confrontations;

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  reduce distractions in the interviewing environment as much as possible;

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  provide relaxed responses, even to odd or peculiar questions or behaviors;

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  use telephone interviews to contact individuals prone to anger, aggression, hostility, or violence;

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  arrange for the presence of a third party or another employee, if possible;

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  terminate the interview and leave calmly and politely before matters get out of hand during home visits when threatened, or verbally abused; and

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  notify management staff and the appropriate community service or law enforcement agency if the person you are interviewing threatens suicide. Suggest help at the nearby crisis prevention center and provide the emergency telephone number. The Enhanced Leads and Appointment System (eLAS) Field Office Information Page (FOIP) screen shows suicide prevention agencies. For instructions on handling potential suicidal-homicidal behavior, see DI 11005.080.