Leading Suicide Prevention Researcher to Deliver 2015 Waller Lecture at UNC

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (March 15, 2015) — Eric Caine, M.D., director of the Injury Control Research Center for Suicide Prevention at the University of Rochester Medical Center, will present this year’s Patricia F. Waller Lecture at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill.

“Suicide Prevention is A Winnable Battle..if…” will be presented at the George Watts Hill Alumni Center, which is located on the UNC-CH campus, on Monday, April 13 at 1:00 p.m. A reception will follow this free, public event.

Suicide was the leading cause of injury death in North Carolina in 2012 and 2013. And it’s not just a problem in the Tar heel state. Suicide rates have risen steadily across the country since 1999. Dr. Caine, a leading researcher in the field of risk factors for suicide and ways to prevent suicide, will discuss the necessity of considering how best to develop collective, community-based programs that deal with both individual and contextual factors that contribute to suicide. These programs are built upon an understanding of the social geography of communities, identifying where we can engage distinct populations and the social ecology of groups bearing specific risks.

About the Waller Lecture:
The Waller Lecture is held annually in memory of Patricia F. Waller, Ph.D., a professor who founded the UNC Injury Prevention Research Center and was a pioneer in injury control. She worked for nearly two decades as a researcher at the UNC Highway Safety Research Center, where she developed the concept for graduated licensing, which was adopted nationwide.

The lecture is supported by private donations and is sponsored by the UNC Highway Safety Research Center, the UNC Injury Prevention Research Center and the UNC College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Psychology.

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UNC Highway Safety Research Center contact:
Caroline Mozingo
mozingo@hsrc.unc.edu
919-962-5835

UNC Injury Prevention Research Center contact:
Elizabeth Knight
lknight@med.unc.edu
919-843-1472