Goodman named to suicide prevention council

Wayne Goodman, M.D., chairman of the department of psychiatry at the College of Medicine, has begun a three-year term on the state's Suicide Prevention Coordinating Council.

"The Suicide Prevention Coordinating Council will develop and implement a statewide strategy to reduce Florida's suicide rate," said Gov. Charlie Crist in a written statement. "I am hopeful that through their work, fewer families and communities will be affected by suicide."

Crist appointed Goodman after signing House Bill 139 earlier this year to establish the council, which will advise the newly created Statewide Office of Suicide Prevention within the Florida Office of Drug Control.

"Our statewide partners are extremely proud of the opportunity this legislation provides," said Bill Janes, director of the Florida Office of Drug Control. "Tragically, six Floridians lose their lives every day to suicide, which is preventable in many cases. Our new state office and this council will help reverse this trend."

Also appointed to the council were Marshall Knudson, director of the Alachua County Crisis Center, and Stephen Roggenbaum, assistant in research at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of South Florida.

Goodman's appointment began Aug. 30 and ends July 1, 2010.

He is currently on a yearlong leave of absence from UF to fill a key leadership position for the National Institute of Mental Health, where he serves as the acting director of the division for adult translational research.

In the meantime, Mark S. Gold, M.D., psychiatry's associate chairman for education and chief of addiction medicine, is acting chairman of the psychiatry department.