How a Mental Health Service Corps could aid suicide prevention
An innovative concept – inspired by the Peace Corps – to train a diverse workforce in basic mental health support and interventions was just one idea shared in the very first episode of Never the Same.
The video podcast hosted by Professor Tony Pisani, SafeSide Prevention’s Chief Scientific Advisor and Founder, explores how influential people have shaped and developed ideas in the field of suicide prevention.
In the pilot episode, Dr Pisani is joined by Dr David Jobes, a leading expert in suicide prevention and the creator of the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) approach, a targeted, evidence-based intervention for suicide risk. Together, Drs Pisani and Jobes explore the psychology of life and effective mental health interventions.
"There'll never be enough clinicians for 15,600,000 adults and teens with serious thoughts of suicide," Dr. Jobes said.
"So if we really want to move the needle, we need a massive workforce."
The concept of a Mental Health Service Corps draws inspiration from successful programs like the Peace Corps. Dr Jobes envisions it as a federal initiative that could significantly expand the mental health workforce.
"The Mental Health Service Corps could take students out of college, give them some loan forgiveness, take people, give them experience, train them,” he said.
“You don't have to have a PhD, an M.D., or a master's degree in safety planning, lethal means discussions or caring contact follow-ups."
Dr Pisani emphasised that while expanding mental health support is crucial, creating lasting change requires strategically engaging influential community members, not just reaching everyone at once.
“Based on network theory and a lot of evidence from dissemination and implementation research, you don't need every single person to be a thought leader,” he said.
“You need key people who are kind of key opinion leaders within their networks to take those on."
Watch Episode One of Never the Same here.