Dr. Edwin
Shneidman’s concept of “postvention as prevention” has governed Dr. Frank Campbell’s work with suicide survivors since 1986.
Dr. Campbell envisioned a “LOSS Team”, a team of trained survivors who would go to the scenes of suicides to
disseminate information about resources and be the installation of hope for the newly bereaved.
Read more about LOSS Team here.
Read more about the Circular Model of Suicide Reduction by clicking here or on the graphic to the left.
Interested parties in other communities have received training related to the active postvention model and each week others wanting to start a LOSS team in their
communities contact Dr. Campbell to find out how to get started.
Frank R. Campbell, Ph.D., LCSW, CT is the former Executive Director of the Baton Rouge Crisis
Intervention Center and the Crisis Center Foundation in Louisiana, USA. He is currently Senior Consultant for Campbell and Associates Consulting where
he consults with communities and on Forensic Suicidology cases.
It was due to his more than twenty years of
working with those bereaved by suicide that he introduced his Active Postvention Model (APM) most commonly known as the LOSS Team (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors).
His work with survivors and victims of trauma has been featured in three Discovery channel documentaries.
The APM concept involves a team of first responders who go to the scene of a suicide and provide support and referral for those bereaved by the suicide. The goal has
been to shorten the elapsed time between the death and survivors finding the help they feel will help them cope with this devastating loss. The Active Postvention Model and has shown to have a positive impact on both the team members (most often bereaved individuals who have gotten help and now provide the installation of hope to the newly bereaved) as well as the newly bereaved. The model has now been replicated in countries as diverse as Australia, Singapore, Northern Ireland, Canada and America.
Campbell has also been selected to receive the Louis Dublin award at the 2010 American Association of Suicidology Conference. Dr. Campbell is a past president of AAS and has received the Roger J.
Tierney award for service. He was Social Worker of the year in Louisiana and the first John W. Barton Fellow selected in his hometown of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.
Speakers include Dr Frank Campbell, Dr John McIntosh, several leaders of LOSS Teams across the country, some personal survivor testimonies, and much more.
This will be a valuable time to learn more about existing and up & coming LOSS Teams across the country and a chance to network with fellow passionate postvention
champions.
Keynote Address from the Bring the Conversation to Light Luncheon
Dr. Campbell delivered the keynote address at the Jordan Elizabeth Foster Foundation’s Bring the Conversation to Light Luncheon at
Will Rogers Auditorium in Ft. Worth, Texas in November, 2019.
His topic is “Will you be Found in the Formula for Hope?”. For more information on the Foundation, visit jordanharrisfoundation.org.
2023 National LOSS Team Lunch and Learn Series continues in August Join us online for a time of learning and collaboration.
Each session will include an opportunity to hear from knowledgeable presenters and interaction with fellow leaders.
The August session is scheduled for August 16th from 12:45-2:00 eastern. The topic is
Keeping Volunteers Engaged, and is
Presented by EMILY REIDFORD and SANDRA McNALLY.
Presenters will share:
What ongoing training they offer existing volunteers and results they have seen
What are the most successful ways they recognize and show appreciation of their volunteers
How do they keep their volunteers engaged with their postvention mission outside of just attending scenes.
Suicide as a Public Health Issue
A speech by Dr. Frank Campbell before the Baton Rouge Rotary Club on September 11, 2019. At that time, Dr. Campbell was the chair of the National Suicidology Training Center,
a program of the Baton Rouge Crisis Intervention Center.
He discusses: suicide as a public health issue; the connection between suicide and homicide in the brain; suicide statistics; and Nevada’s successful suicide prevention efforts.
Click here or on the screenshot at the left to watch the video from the Louisiana Digital Media Archive.
Great Strides in Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors in Indiana
In January of 2023, Denise Meine-Graham shared the remarkable progress made in providing postvention care in Indiana. The state is on track to have 6-10 LOSS Teams fully active
by the end of 2023 and even more into 2024!
Three counties have active LOSS teams; 11 counties have teams in process; and 10 other counties are either exploring
LOSS teams or have non-scene outreach in place.
These efforts are made possible by an amazing team which includes Michelle Bulington (Indiana Family and Social Services Administration), Justin Beattey and Karisa
Vandeventer (Mental Health America of Indiana), and Alice Jordan-Mills (Purdue University at Fort Wayne).
Click here or on the thumbnail map above to see the complete report.
Mayor Henry proclaims October 17, 2022 as NATIONAL LOSS TEAM DAY
In conjunction with the Annual National LOSS (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors) Team Conference taking place at
Purdue University Fort Wayne on October 17 - 18, Mayor Thomas C. Henry proclaimed October 17, 2022 as National Loss Team Day in Fort Wayne.
His proclamation
recognizes that “developing a LOSS Team and integrating it into a community provides immediate support and resources to persons who have lost a loved one, friend, or colleague to suicide”
He commends the work of LOSS teams in providing an organized response to local suicides, stating, “Although the bereaved may struggle for long periods of time before seeking or receiving
help, LOSS Teams can change that”.
You can read Mayor Henry’s full proclamation by clicking on this link or on the thumbnail above.
On behalf of the Massachusetts Suicide Postvention Task Force, in collaboration with William James College, you are invited to participate in a research study.
The study aims to explore suicide loss survivors’ experiences with early responders which includes law enforcement, fire department, emergency medical services, and medical examiner’s
office personnel, along with faith leaders and funeral professionals. The goal of the study is to understand the ways in which early responders can offer meaningful support to suicide loss survivors and facilitate referrals to support services.
If you experienced a suicide loss longer than 12 months ago, you are eligible to participate. Click here for more details and the link to the online survey.
Dr. Campbell’s beloved wife of 49 years, Cheryl Payne Campbell, died peacefully on December 13, 2019, surrounded by her family under hospice care at the Missouri Baptist Medical Center in St. Louis
after a four-week hospitalization. You may read the full obituary here.
A celebration of Cheryl’s remarkable life took place July 18, 2020 at Broadmoor United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge, La.
Dr. Charles Simmons led the ceremony. A video of the service is shared here.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, and by her own request, the family has set up a matching scholarship/support fund at the Baton Rouge Crisis Intervention Center in her name.
Items of Interest:
Driving Out Suicide: Tackling A Public Health Crisis with Love Gabriel Nathan and his best four-wheeled friend, Herbie the Love Bug, have embarked on an ambitious,
memorable, and inspiring journey to change
the dialogue around suicide awareness and prevention.
Gabe tells his story in a TEDxWestChester presentation in November, 2019. With humor and grace, Gabriel shares his own deeply moving personal challenges with
mental health and how his story has, in turn, touched thousands of lives. Gabe is an author, editor, actor, playwright, director, mental health and suicide awareness advocate.
He is the Editor in Chief of OC87 Recovery Diaries, an online mental health publication that tells stories of mental health, empowerment, and change.
Click here or on the image of Gabe at the right to watch his TEDx talk.
It was due to his more than twenty years of
working with those bereaved by suicide that he introduced his Active Postvention Model (APM) most commonly known as the LOSS Team (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors).
His work with survivors and victims of trauma has been featured in three Discovery channel documentaries.
