Content Warning: This podcast discusses suicide, suicidal thoughts, and suicide bereavement. Some content may be distressing. Please listen in a way that feels safe for you and seek support if needed.
Description: This episode explores the different ways that institutions and families respond after a suicide death. Grief after suicide often includes trauma, stigma, and complicated emotions, particularly within military and public safety communities. Panellists examine tensions around memorialization, recognition, and whether a death is formally acknowledged as service-related. For families, remembrance is an ongoing process; for institutions, it is often treated as a single event. The conversation emphasizes compassionate communication, family inclusion from the beginning, and long-term follow-up beyond formal ceremonies.
Moderated by:
Suzanne Bailey: Long-time social worker with Canada’s Department of National Defence and contributor to the Road to Mental Readiness program
Dr. Henry Bowen: Director of research, Military and Emergency Services Health Australia
Guest Panellists:
Dr. Matthew Barrett: Historian, artist and Managing Editor of the journal Canadian Military History
Claudine Barrette: Clinical psychologist and National Clinical Advisor for Wounded Warriors Canada
Relevant Resources:
· Suicide in Canadian military: Fallen on the Field of Honour?: Attitudes of the Canadian Public towards Suicides in the Canadian Military—1914-2014
· Surviving Family Program: Wounded Warriors Canada—Surviving Family Program
· Complicated grief (military): Support for Complicated Grief in Military Primary Care: Associations, Challenges, and Opportunities
· Sam Sharpe memorial: Veterans Affairs Canada—Lieutenant-Colonel Sam Sharpe Relief
· Suicide postvention (Australia): Support After First Responder Suicide (SAFeRS) Study: Short Report
· Family support for military and PSP suicide: Suicide risk is high for military and emergency workers – but support for their families and peers is missing
· Military suicide exposure and risk (contagion-USA): Those left behind: A scoping review of the effects of suicide exposure on veterans, service members, and military families
· Military Family Bereavement: National Military Family Bereavement Study
