September 5, 2019
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The sixth annual Ohio suicide prevention conference – “Suicide in Healthcare Professionals: The Unspoken Truth” – aims to raise awareness about suicide in health care professionals. Experts will examine the prevalence of suicide among health care professionals, discuss early warning signs and explore the tools and resources needed for suicide prevention and ongoing self-care.
The conference is presented by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and Nationwide Children’s Hospital from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday at the Ohio Union, 1739 N. High St. Dr. K. Luan Phan, chair of the department of psychiatry and behavioral health at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, and Dr. Mark Hurst, medical director of the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, will lead the conference.
Bernadette Melnyk, chief wellness officer and dean of the College of Nursing at The Ohio State University, will discuss the latest evidence on interventions to enhance clinician mental health/well-being and prevent suicide. She’ll also describe the main causes of burnout, depression and distress in clinicians, and its effects on the safety of care. Ohio State’s framework and comprehensive approach to wellness will be highlighted with its associated outcomes.
Other speakers include:
- Dr. Michael Myers, professor of clinical psychiatry at SUNY-Downstate Medical Center, will discuss his ongoing research interviewing the significant others of physicians who have taken their lives.
- Dr. Christine Moutier, chief medical officer for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, will discuss ways for health care professionals to prevent suicides and build resilience.
- Tony Coder, executive director of the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation, will give an early look to the State of Ohio Suicide Prevention Plan that will be released in early 2020.
Media representatives are asked to call the Media Relations office at 614-293-3737 to make arrangements for event coverage. The complete conference agenda is available here.
# # #
Media Contact: Eileen Scahill, Wexner Medical Center Media Relations, 614-293-3737, Eileen.Scahill@osumc.edu