In 2018, Dr. Jan Mokkenstorm and 113 Suicide Prevention hosted the fourth Zero Suicide International summit in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Together with David Covington, Dr. Mokkenstorm developed the International Declaration for Better Healthcare: Zero Suicide in 2015, inspired and led by Professor Jo Smith’s pioneering work in early intervention services for first break psychosis.
In 2017, Suicide Prevention Australia’s Sue Murray inspired the movement to bring a laser focus to translating the international declaration vision into a Framework for Local Action. Dr. Mokkenstorm continued the thread with his passion that we must “move beyond the tipping point,” the unifying theme for the interactive program his team crafted for the 2018 event.
Jan was part of the inaugural Zero Suicide International meeting when Jerry Reed and David Covington convened a small group to join Dr. Keith Hawton’s IIMHL match in Oxford in 2014, and Dr. Mokkenstorm’s messaging from that small start continues to anchor the movement’s efforts: that not one in our care should die alone and in despair.
Dr. Mokkenstorm also led the article in Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior Journal, “Is It Rational to Pursue Zero Suicides Among Patients in Health Care?”