Professor Nicholas Procter will present a lecture ‘Why Compassion Matters in Mental Health and Suicide Prevention’ on November 23 at the UniSA Mount Gambier campus.

Professor Procter will discuss that for people working in suicide prevention and mental health care, supporting individuals in distress and their loved ones, compassionate responses are a vital means of providing support and creating comfort.

He will also explore that by breaking down barriers, reducing stigma in mental health, promoting therapeutic relationships, understanding and responding to drivers of distress and being trauma informed can also lead to positive outcomes.

Professor Procter is Australia’s national representative to the International Association for Suicide Prevention, a member of the Service Systems Working Group National Suicide Prevention Office, Steering Committee for the National Stigma and Discrimination Reduction Strategy, and AIHW Refugee and Humanitarian Entrant Health Expert Advisory Group.

He has previously held several senior independent roles, including to the Office of the Prime Minister’s National Suicide Prevention Taskforce, Commonwealth Ombudsman, and to the Ministers Council for Asylum Seekers and Detention.

He is committed to lifelong learning and has completed advanced education in Trauma Informed Practice with the United States Office of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and as a Psychological Autopsy Investigator with the American Association of Suicidology.

His latest book Mental Health: A Person-centered Approach is a standard textbook for mental health nurse education in Australia and is well known internationally.

The evening will start with pre-lecture drinks at 6pm and Professor Procter’s lecture will commence at 6.30pm.

The event will be livestreamed for those unable to attend our campus in person.