September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. To finish out the month of the awareness campaign, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth’s (NMCP) Suicide Prevention Program coordinators hosted a one mile walk.
“The walk was to close out the month,” said Lt. Cmdr. Stephanie Long, NMCP’s Suicide Prevention Program coordinator. “It is a really important time to reflect on people that we’ve lost to suicide, to honor their memories and to think about how we can prevent this from happening to another individual.”
More than a dozen NMCP staff members and patients participated in the walk around Hospital Point. Before the walk started, Capt. Carolyn Rice, NMCP’s executive officer, talked to the participants.
“I wanted to come out and say this is great that you took some time out to come out today,” Rice said. “This is important. This is a recognition to a serious crisis in our country… suicide, and it touches all of us, and I’m sure you are here because it has touched you. This is a time to reflect on this and show your camaraderie and support for each other, and that goes a long way.”
As the U. S. Navy's oldest, continuously-operating hospital since 1830,
Naval Medical Center Portsmouth proudly serves past and present military
members and their families. The nationally acclaimed, state of the art
medical center, including its ten branch health and TRICARE Prime clinics, serves the Hampton Roads area; in addition to premier research and teaching programs designed to prepare new doctors, nurses and hospital corpsmen for future roles in healing and wellness.