September 5, 2025 - Dr. Lindsey Jasinski and Dr. Marc Woods (EmPATH - World Suicide Prevention Day)

LEXINGTON, Ky. (September 5, 2025) – September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and September 10th marks World Suicide Prevention Day — a moment to highlight the importance of open, honest conversations about mental health and the resources available to help those in crisis.

On this episode of “Behind the Blue”, Dr. Lindsey Jasinski and Dr. Marc Woods, two of the key leaders behind the EmPATH program at Eastern State Hospital, discuss their decades of experience in behavioral health and suicide prevention, and share how their team is helping Kentuckians find hope during some of their most vulnerable moments.

They discuss the alarming prevalence of suicide—particularly among young people in Kentucky—and offer actionable insight on how to support someone who may be struggling. They also explain how EmPATH, a low-barrier, 24/7 mental crisis emergency unit, is changing the way patients receive immediate, compassionate mental health care—and why that model is quickly gaining national attention.

“Behind the Blue” is available via a variety of podcast providers, including iTunes and Spotify. Become a subscriber to receive new episodes of “Behind the Blue” each week. UK’s latest medical breakthroughs, research, artists and writers will be featured, along with the most important news impacting the university.

“Behind the Blue” is a joint production of the University of Kentucky and UK HealthCare. Transcripts for most episodes are now embedded in the audio file and can be accessed in many podcast apps during playback. Transcripts for older episodes remain available on the show’s blog page. 

If you or someone you know is struggling, help is available.

UK HealthCare's EmPATH unit (Emergency Psychiatric Assessment, Treatment, and Healing) is a new emergency unit dedicated to the treatment of patients experiencing a mental health crisis. Located on the campus of Eastern State Hospital at 1350 Bull Lea Road in Lexington, this unit is open 24/7, 365 days a year and is designed to provide immediate access to mental health care and resources. Referrals are not needed to come to EmPATH.

You can also call or text 988, the national Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, to speak with a trained counselor — free, confidential, and available 24 hours a day.

And for Kentuckians, free QPR training (Question, Persuade, Refer) is available at kyqpr.ukhc.org — a one-hour course that could help you save a life.

To discover how the University of Kentucky is advancing our Commonwealth, click here.