In January 2008, the United States National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (NSPL) Standards, Trainings and Practices Subcommittee (STPS) and Steering Committee approved the Policy for Helping Callers at Imminent Risk of Suicide.This panel will describe: 1) Background and need for standards, including current gaps in crisis center accreditation requirements as well as where guidelines for helping callers at imminent risk of suicide are nonexistent or insufficient to address the needs noted in research findings; 2) Underlying set of values used for development of the guidelines, including o Need to take all actions necessary to prevent a caller from dying by suicide, o Active collaboration with the caller to act to secure his/her own safety and o Collaboration with other community crisis and emergency services.