A Tasmanian professor has returned home for recognition of her internationally acclaimed work around suicide prevention.
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For almost three decades University of Tasmania alumna professor Jane Pirkis has been researching and shaping suicide prevention policy.
Her work has resulted in the the creation of suicide prevention structures in locations that are frequently used for suicide, and international media guidelines about how to report on suicide.
For this work and her dedication to the cause, Professor Pirkis has been presented with one of the university’s highest accolades.
Her career, which “springboarded” at the University of Tasmania, was recognised on Thursday night when she was awarded the 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award.
Describing the award as an honour, Professor Pirkis was pleased to be back in Tasmania.
Professor Pirkis is an expert in population mental health and her research has led to positive prevention measures.
“My team and I have done a lot of work in looking at how the media can report suicide in a responsible way, and also work on how some of the locations that gain a bit of a reputation as sites that people might go to to try to take their own lives – how we can prevent that happening,” she said.
Since her work began in the early 1990s Professor Pirkis has seen great change in the way mental health is treated.
“I think the stigma around mental health problems has definitely reduced,” she said.
“There’s obviously great community concern about suicide but people are cautious about talking about it.
“Suicide is a really important public health problem and it is largely preventable.”
Professor Pirkis received the award at a gala dinner at the Grand Chancellor Hotel in Launceston on Thursday night.
Now the director of the Centre for Mental Health at the University of Melbourne, Professor Pirkis has had a distinguished career as a researcher.
University vice-chancellor Peter Rathjen said Professor Pirkis’ work had saved lives.