I am particularly interested in rural suicide. Research has consistently identified living in rural regions as risk factors for suicide, with some purported mechanisms being lack of health care and increased access to firearms. However, I have some concerns with the current literature. Some specific questions I am currently exploring are:
- How can be better define rural?
- What are the unique suicide risks for rural Canadians?
- How can we best support rural residents experiencing suicide ideation or behavior and health care providers supporting these individuals?
- How can technology provide addition suicide prevention/intervention/postvention support for rural Canadians?
My dissertation and other work seeks to answer some of these questions.