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Ninety per cent of people who engage in suicide-related behaviours are experiencing depression, other mental health issues, or have an addiction.

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CV - Jennifer Brasch

Jennifer Susan Brasch

Department of Psychiatry & Behavioural Neurosciences,
McMaster University, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, 50 Charlton Avenue East, Hamilton, Ontario L8N 4A6
Phone: (905) 522-1155 ext. 34358, Fax: (905) 521-6059, Email: jbrasch@stjoes.ca

Current Appointments

Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University

Medical Director, Psychiatric Emergency Service, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton

Active Staff (Full-time) Mental Health and Addictions Program, St. Joseph's Healthcare Chair, Medical Education Committee, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario

Member, Board of Directors, and Co-Chair, Strategy Committee, Suicide Prevention Community Council of Hamilton

Background

Bachelor of Science (BSc), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, 1987

Medical Doctorate (MD), Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario. 1991

Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (Canada) in Psychiatry (FRCPC) 1996

McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Resident in Psychiatry July 1992 – June 1996

Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, Fellowship in Emergency Psychiatry June 1996 – June 1997.

Selected Publications and Presentations

Brasch JS, Gluck RL, Cobb TG, Richard J. Residency Training in Emergency Psychiatry: A Model Curriculum Developed by the Education Committee of the American Association for Emergency Psychiatry. Acad Psychiatry, 2004, Summer 28(2):95-103.

Brasch JS, MacQueen G, Joffe R: Endocrine Disorders, In Women’s Mental Health: A Comprehensive Textbook, edited by Susan G. Kornstein and Anita Clayton. Guilford Publications, Inc. New York, January 2002.

Brasch JS. An Evidence-Based Approach to Suicide Risk Assessment. Grand Rounds, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. January 30, 2002.

Brasch JS. Suicide Risk Assessment, Seminar for clinical clerks in psychiatry, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, presented every 6 weeks.

Brasch JS. Education and Training in the Psychiatric Emergency Service, in Emergency Psychiatry: Principles and Practice. 485-498 Glick RL et al (eds), Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia 2008.

Boursiquot P, Brasch JS. Depression, Euphoria and Anger in the Emergency Department, in The Handbook of Emergency Psychiatry, edited by Riba M, American Psychiatric Press, Inc. Washington, DC, in press.

Brasch JS, Kirkpatrick H. The Reasons to go on Living Project. Presented at:

• Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention Annual Meeting, Quebec City, Quebec, October 2008.
• American Association of Suicidology Annual Meeting, San Fransisco, California, April 2009.
• Ontario Crisis Worker’s Association Annual Meeting, Gananoque, Ontario, June 2009.
• Canadian Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting, St. John’s, Newfoundland, August 2009.
• Update prepared for the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention Annual Meeting, Brandon, Manitoba, October 21, 2009.

Dr. Brasch will be speaking at Grand Rounds, Department of Psychiatry, University of Winnipeg on Tuesday, October 20th, 2009:

60 Stories of Recovery after a Suicide Attempt:
The Reasons to go on Living Project

Suicide attempts are 10-20x more common than completed suicide and an important risk factor for suicide, yet most people who attempt suicide do not die by suicide. Better understanding of the factors that lead to recovery after a suicide attempt would contribute to the evidence available to guide clinicians assessing and treating patients with suicidal ideation. Narrative research is ideally suited to understanding the transition to a state of hopefulness and other factors critical to recovery following a suicide attempt. The Reasons to go on Living Project uses a website to invite participants to anonymously submit their stories of recovery after a suicide attempt. The presentation will include a description of the Project and initial analysis of the first 60 stories received.

Learning Objectives:

By the completion of this presentation, attendees will be able to:

1. List the advantages and challenges of using the internet for research
2. Describe the value of narrative studies in psychiatry
3. Describe the 5 themes frequently expressed by people who have made a suicide attempt and chosen to go on living