County staff, survivor urge sustained action for Suicide Prevention Week; virtual summit announced

The Solano County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution recognizing the week of Sept. 8–14, 2024 as National Suicide Prevention Week and heard a multi-speaker presentation on prevention, postvention and local services.

Roger Robinson, assistant director with Health and Social Services, framed the discussion and introduced county behavioral-health staff. Chief Deputy Emery Cohen noted a virtual multi-county suicide prevention summit on Sept. 27 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and highlighted the 988 crisis line as a new resource: "if you dial 988, you could chat, text, or call, and you could talk to somebody if you're having any thoughts of suicide," Cohen said.

Lori Espinosa, Solano Behavioral Health’s suicide response coordinator and a suicide loss survivor, outlined postvention services funded by a California Department of Public Health grant, saying postvention "is truly prevention" and describing grief groups and one-on-one support. Kurt Erickson, a Fairfield resident and tenured music professor who lost his 18-year-old daughter to suicide, shared his experience and community outreach work, explaining his art-therapy programs are awaiting funding commitments from the San Francisco VA Medical Center and local vet centers. Erickson said, "when something at this level of trauma happens, you want to help people," and described plans for campus programming to destigmatize mental-health help.

County staff emphasized that suicide prevention requires year-round attention, community resources and partnerships with schools and veteran services. The presentation included invitations to participate in support groups and public events, and staff encouraged residents to use local wellness centers and county resources.