The purpose of this research is to produce revised evidence based guidelines that will provide information for nurses and other healthcare providers to a) recognize risk of suicidal behavior in older adults 65 and above and to b) provide appropriate crisis intervention. A large scale literature review was conducted to collect the information for the guidelines. The information was evaluated for relevancy, reliability, and time frame in relation to our research. In 1999, the Surgeon General issued a call to prevent suicide in the United States. As a result, the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention was developed. One important goal of this national strategy is to prevent “premature death” due to suicide across the life span. The significance of this study is that adults over the age of 65 have the highest risk for suicide of any age group. The elderly population is increasing and if current trends continue, by the year 2030 older adults will make up 21.8% of the United States population and will account for 35% of suicides.