Bron speaks with Dr Lyn O’Grady (community psychologist and suicidology researcher) about person-centred suicide prevention. Lyn shares how decades of work across communities, schools, projects and private practice shaped her understanding of suicidality and why relying solely on checklists can shut down meaningful conversations.

They chat about:
👉🏽 How person-centred care differs from traditional risk assessments
👉🏻 The limits of low/medium/high suicide-risk categories
👉🏿 Using risk formulation and collaborative, empowering safety planning
👉 Keeping conversations open without increasing shame or fear
👉🏽 How clinicians can sit with uncertainty, use existing skills, and practise sustainably in this challenging space

Guest: Lyn O'Grady - Community Psychologist

LINKS

• Lyn is featured in this article: ​How to take a person-centred approach to suicide prevention, published by the Australian Psychological Society
• Lyn is available for supervision - you can message her on LinkedIn
• Open-access research paper: Cognitive Behavior Therapy With and Without Narrative Assessment and Suicide Attempts: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (2025): "Results suggest that a narrative assessment (of suicide risk) may be a simple and effective way to capture the forces that lead to suicide attempts and to direct interventions toward their prevention." 👏

THE END BITS

Mental Work is the Australian podcast for early-career psychologists about working in mental health. Hosted by psychologist/researcher Dr Bronwyn Milkins.

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Have a question, episode idea or just want to say hi? DM Bron on Instagram, leave a comment on the Spotify episode, or email [email protected]

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CREDITS

Producer: Michael English

Music: Home

Commitment: Mental Work believes in an inclusive and diverse mental health workforce. We honor the strength, resilience, and invaluable contributions of mental health workers with lived experiences of mental illness, disability, neurodivergence, LGBTIQA+ identities, and diverse culture and language. We recognise our First Nations colleagues as Traditional Custodians of the land and pay respect to Elders past, present, and emerging. Mental Work is recorded on unceded Whadjuk Noongar boodja.

Disclaimer: Mental Work provides informational content. Mental Work is not a psychological service and being a listener or guest does not establish a therapeutic relationship. Content should not be considered a replacement for professional consultation or therapy. All views expressed are personal, subject to change, and do not represent those of any affiliated employer, service, or organisation past or present. Efforts are made to ensure accuracy, but opinions may not always align with fact. Listeners are encouraged to thoughtfully assess the information presented and report any inaccuracies or concerns via email. Further information can be found here.

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