Connect with EDC experts at NatCon26, the National Council for Mental Wellbeing's annual conference, in Colorado.
Connect with us at NatCon26!
EDC will be presenting at NatCon on April 27th & 29th. Throughout the conference, come by our booth #1426 to say hello!
Follow the links below to speak with our suicide prevention and maternal and child health experts before, during, or after NatCon Book with Barb Gay
Our Sessions
#1. A18 - Unpacking the Unknowns: A Framework for Evaluating Suicide Prevention in the United States
- Information
When: Monday, April 27, 2026 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM MDT
Presented by: EDC's Colleen Carr & Kristen Quinlan will be on the panel
Description: Attendees will learn what is required to build a whole-of-society approach to evaluating suicide prevention progress in the U.S., including, the international evidence on national strategy effectiveness and key methodological gaps. They will learn about "Hope Counts," an initiative of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention, and the early work to develop a shared theory of change, nested logic models, and initial metric identification. Attendees will hear about the emerging vision for national–local alignment and ways communities may engage with the evolving evaluation framework.
#2. H6 - Maternal Mental Health and Suicide Prevention: An Interdisciplinary Conversation About Opportunities for Improving Care
- Information
When: Monday, May 5th, 12:30-1:30pm
Presented by: EDC's Julie Goldstein Grumet and Zhandra Levesque will be on the panel
Description: Suicide is a leading cause of maternal mortality in the United States, where maternal death rates exceed those of other high-income countries and disproportionately affect Black individuals, rural residents, and Medicaid recipients. A recent PCORI-funded project convened an interdisciplinary group to examine gaps in current approaches and identify how evidence-based suicide prevention strategies can be better adapted to the perinatal context. Findings underscored the need for broader more inclusive prevention frameworks spanning pregnancy through the full postpartum year and extending beyond traditional clinical settings to include community-based perinatal environments where trusted relationships and repeated touchpoints create opportunities for early identification and intervention. This session will provide an overview of these patient-centered, collaborative, evidence-based approaches followed by a moderated discussion reflecting on implications for research, practice, policy, and systems design across clinical and community perinatal systems.
EDC Resources
- Resources
Videos: Aspire to Zero, Voices of Zero Suicide, Seven Elements of Zero Suicide
Zero Suicide Toolkit: The Zero Suicide framework operationalizes the core components necessary for health care systems to transform suicide care into seven elements. The Toolkit uses research, tools, and videos to walk implementers through putting the Zero Suicide model into practice.
Zero Suicide Outcome Stories: Systems describe their experience in implementing and measuring Zero Suicide approaches.
Zero Suicide Journey Stories: Seven healthcare systems share insights, successes, and lessons learned from a collaborative effort to improve suicide care.
Suicide Care Insights: Stories and tips from Zero Suicide implementers.
Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention in Schools: EDC's Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention (MTSP) for Schools is designed to assist educational leaders in improving upon strategic planning and structural changes toward suicide prevention within a multi-tiered system of support.
Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention in Schools: EDC's Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention (MTSP) for Schools is designed to assist educational leaders in improving upon strategic planning and structural changes toward suicide prevention within a multi-tiered system of support.
Film: After Your Child's Suicide Attempt
EDC Services
Zero Suicide
EDC offers training and consultation support for systems implementing Zero Suicide. Applications are open for opportunities to join our signature National Zero Suicide Academy training online.
- National Zero Suicide Academy | Online | Summer 2026
- National Zero Suicide Community of Practice | October 2026–June 2027
Assessing & Managing Suicide Risk
Registration is open for training in AMSR for Outpatient settings:
- AMSR-Outpatient Training | June 2026
- AMSR-Outpatient Training | July 2026
- AMSR-Outpatient Training | September 2026
Community-Led Suicide Prevention
Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention for Schools
We also offer training and consultation in Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention for Schools.
Barb Gay is a highly experienced program leader and technical assistance provider who specializes in behavioral health and crisis care administration, suicide prevention system building, substance misuse prevention, social services, strategic planning, financial management, and staff development.
Dr. Julie Goldstein Grumet, Director of Zero Suicide at EDC, provides strategic direction to healthcare systems to improve the identification and treatment of people at risk for suicide.
Zhandra Levesque, EDC director of maternal and child health, is a public health expert and highly experienced program leader with over 15 years of experience managing large-scale federal, state, and philanthropic initiatives to improve outcomes for pregnant women, infants, children, and families.
Colleen Carr, director for the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention (Action Alliance) at EDC, brings nearly two decades of public health experience to leading the nation’s public-private partnership for suicide prevention charged with advancing the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.
Kristen Quinlan, an expert in health psychology and a highly experienced evaluator, specializes in leading applied research focused on preventing suicide, substance misuse, and injury and violence.