Community Conversations: Suicide Prevention and Lethal Means Safety

Convening Description:

Hosted by the St. Louis Regional Suicide Prevention Coalition and the Safer Homes Collaborative, this interactive morning workshop focuses on upstream approaches to suicide prevention, highlighting how early identification, environmental safety, and supportive conversations can reduce risk before a crisis escalates. The session places particular emphasis on lethal means safety, with a respectful, evidence‑informed focus on firearms as a critical and preventable risk factor. Through facilitated networking sessions, we will engage with regional partners, ask questions, and build networks that support an ongoing, community‑driven approach to suicide prevention.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the role of upstream and community-led strategies - including lethal means safety - in reducing the risk of firearm suicide.
2. Learn from three MFH firearm suicide prevention grantees (Behavioral Health Response, Compass Behavioral Health, Safer Homes Collaborative) about culturally responsive practices, community engagement, and barriers such as stigma, autonomy concerns, and equitable access to care.
3. Name at least two concrete actions that individuals, families, and professionals can take to promote safer firearm storage and emotional wellness for those at risk of suicide.

Note about Contact Hours: We offer 2 Continuing Education (CE) credits for $20. Individuals need to stay throughout whole session to receive credit. No partial credit will be awarded.

Speakers:

Kirsten Sierra, Mercy

Elizabeth Makulec, KUTO, Kids Under Twenty One

Shanna Sorg, Safer Homes Collaborative

Marcel Scaife, Missouri Foundation for Health

Whitney Shumway, Compass Health Network

David Ray, Behavioral Health Response

Supported By:

Missouri Foundation for Health, Saint Louis Mental Health Board, PreventEd, and the Saint Louis Veterans Administration

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Host or Publisher St. Louis Regional Suicide Prevention Coalition