Suicide Prevention

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Gourley, Bryan, B.S.

Bryan previously graduated from Rockhurst with a BS in psychology. He has worked in social services with homeless youth in both Kansas City and Colorado providing outreach counseling to at-risk and homeless youth living on the streets. Currently Bryan serves as a member of the Zero Youth Suicide Prevention team providing outreach to youth and young adults. He has held multiple leadership roles during his professional working career. Bryan is currently working towards earning his MBA from Rockhurst in hopes of assisting small non profits as well as social enterprise companies that provide social services and that help communities in powerful ways.
 

 

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Millar, Kirsti, M.S.


Kirsti Millar is the Suicide Prevention Liaison at ReDiscover where she coordinates the Show Me Zero Youth Suicide Grant which serves clients ages 10-24. She has dynamic experience in crisis work and has utilized her creativity in program expansion and client engagement at ReDiscover for three years. She has five years in the field working with both adults and youth alike in therapeutic, case management and crisis like settings. She completed her master’s degree in counseling from Missouri State University with an emphasis in Play Therapy. Kirsti enjoys working with youth and has a passion for community engagement. Kirsti has extensive training across multiple modalities including: motivational interviewing, positive youth development, harm reduction, assessing and managing suicide risk, trauma informed care, vicarious trauma, EMDR and play therapy.


Presentation(s): 

Preventing Youth Suicide in Missouri: Effectiveness of a Hospital, School and Community Mental Health Center Collaboration in Kansas City




 

 

By

White, Heather, BS


Heather White is a Case Manager with the Zero Youth Suicide Program working with adolescents and young adults ages 10-24. She has been working with the ZYS program since May of 2018. Heather has worked with at-risk youth and young adults in the Kansas City Metro area for over 20 years and is dedicated to building, supporting and encouraging her clients to obtain and maintain skills that allow them to create a healthy outlook on life and the future. Heather holds dual Bachelor’s Degrees in Psychology and Sociology (with an emphasis in Human Development and Family Studies) from the University of Missouri- Columbia.

Heather is very passionate about helping our society’s youth and young adults and believes as their lives are ever changing, the challenges that her clients face have become one of the most needed areas to provide mental health education and services.  She believes her greatest skill is to be a cheerleader to her clients as they navigate life, grow and develop into healthy adults.


Fun Facts: Heather is also an AFAA certified Group Fitness and Yoga Instructor and holds a CLC in lactation services. She is also an active member of her church as a Deacon and holds positions on multiple committees.

Presentation(s): 

Preventing Youth Suicide in Missouri: Effectiveness of a Hospital, School and Community Mental Health Center Collaboration in Kansas City






 

 

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Morelan, Rachel, BA, MPA


Rachel Morelan works as the Team Lead for Rediscover’s Youth Suicide Prevention Team. She has over 10 years of experience in law enforcement, probation, victim advocacy and mental health. Rachel holds a Bachelor’s degree in Criminology and a Master’s degree in Public Administration/Human Resources Management. In addition, she is currently working on a second Master’s degree in Social Work to eventually reach her goal of becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. 
Presentation(s): 
Preventing Youth Suicide in Missouri: Effectiveness of a Hospital, School and Community Mental Health Center Collaboration in Kansas City






 

 

By

Alvarado, Michelle, BSW

Michelle works as an Outreach Case Manager for the Suicide Prevention Team. She completed her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work at the University of Missouri, and additionally holds a minor in Spanish. Michelle is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Social Work at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Michelle has previous experience as an Investigator for the Department for Children and Families, and has volunteered for a domestic violence shelter, the Missouri Crisis Line, and the University of Kansas Medical Center as an interpreter.

Michelle is passionate about advocating for individuals in vulnerable populations. She is constantly learning about local resources to help provide a complete and well-rounded service to her clients. Michelle’s work in mental health has been very rewarding for her, as she has witnessed the positive impact Suicide Prevention has had on the families who need us most.



Presentation(s): 

Preventing Youth Suicide in Missouri: Effectiveness of a Hospital, School and Community Mental Health Center Collaboration in Kansas City


 

 

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Scott, Shari, M.A., LPC

Shari is a licensed clinical professional counselor in Kansas, Missouri, and Colorado with over 19 years of experience in the helping field.  After career foundations in investigations of child abuse/neglect cases, Shari decided to further her experience with a Master’s degree in counseling.  She currently works full time in her own private practice while providing on-site counseling for a Kansas City area corporation.  In addition to that, Shari maintains national board certification and various other certifications in telebehavioral health, mediation, and critical incident response.  Throughout the course of her career, Shari has served as a grief support specialist and worked alongside children, teens, and adults who suffered the death of someone close to them.  She speaks locally and regionally to professionals about suicide-related grief and also talks with metro high schools about mental health and suicidality awareness.  She’s previously presented at MO DMH Spring Institute, various local hospitals and schools, the American Counseling Association of Missouri, and the Suicide Prevention Conference.  






Presentation(s): 

Youth Suicide:  A Look At Before and After








 

 

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SOAR can work for YOU! How SOAR can Improve Engagement, Outcomes & Community Alliances

Speaker(s):

Sara Schwab, MS, LPC

Jared Reck, BA

Eric Godfroy

Presentation: SOAR is used throughout Missouri to assist individuals experiencing SMI and homelessness with accessing financial benefits, but the reach of SOAR expands far greater than increasing clients’ income. By developing a consistent practice for utilizing SOAR in local communities, providers will see improvements in client engagement and retention, improved outcomes at the client and program level, and strengthened partnerships with agencies, leading to a more collaborative and coordinated system. This presentation provides an overview of the SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) process in both theory and practice. Strategies for working with challenging circumstances (substance use disorders, initial episodes, institutional barriers) will be discussed and attendees will have an opportunity to talk through barriers that they have experienced when establishing or maintaining a SOAR program. The benefits of maintaining traction through those challenges are impactful to clients, providers, and the local community and each of those areas will be covered in detail.

Objectives:

  1. Describe the SOAR process in Missouri
  2. Utilize specific strategies for working with challenging circumstances during the SOAR process
  3. Identify several benefits of using SOAR at the client, program, and community levels

Schwab_SOAR_PPDownload
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Suicide Risk Assessment: A Review of Risk Factors for Suicide in Bipolar Disorder

Speaker(s):

Anchana Dominic, MD

Presentation: In 2016, 45,000 Americans lost their lives to suicide (CDC Data). Since 1999, suicide rates have gone up by more than 30%. Mental illness is a known contributing factor to suicide. In clinical samples, about 50% of individuals with bipolar disorder were found to have a history of a suicide attempt. The rate of suicide attempts in those with bipolar disorder was twice that of individuals with unipolar depression. In this presentation, Dr. Dominic will review empirically researched risk factors associated with suicide in individuals with bipolar disorder. Specific symptoms and clinical presentations associated with risk of suicide will be discussed. Some of the risk factors include family history of suicide, early onset of bipolar disorder, rapid cycling, and abuse of alcohol and/or drugs. Dr. Dominic will discuss how to evaluate for these risk factors and the clinical application to preventing suicide in this population.

Objectives:

  1. Explain the prevalence of suicide in bipolar disorder
  2. Identify risk factors for suicide in bipolar disorder
  3. Describe how to assess for risk factors in bipolar disorder

Dominic_PPDownload
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The Ethical Case for Prioritizing Suicide Prevention in Training, Practice and Systems, Part II

Speaker(s):

Ryan Lindsay, MSW

Presentation: Suicide represents a significant public health priority in the United States. For social workers, counselors, nurses, educators, administrators, and others who interact with those at-risk of dying by suicide, understanding how to not only prevent but to assess, refer and treat is an ethical mandate. Professionals from across multiple disciplines are driven by a “do no harm” approach; however, our training programs, systems, and professional development priorities often lack suicide prevention as a priority. This talk will provide an overview of the ethical mandates across professions and generate arguments from the literature that makes an ethical case that suicide prevention should be prioritized in training, practice, and systems.

Objectives:

  1. Identify ethical principles relevant to suicide prevention
  2. Describe the problem of suicide
  3. Identify strategies for upholding an ethical mandate of addressing the problem of suicide in training, practice, and systems
  4. Explain how to use existing Codes of Ethics, including NBCC and NASW, to inform trainings, practice and systems regarding prioritizing suicide prevention
Ethical Case for Suicide Prevention in Training Programs-MIMH 2019Download
Safety Plan For Suicide Risk Simuluation Assignment 3.7.19Download
Suicide Risk Assessment Fidelity Checklist 7.24.17Download