March 7, 2024
While having open conversations about mental health struggles can be difficult, they are a crucial step in preventing an emergency. If you’re concerned that someone close to you is exhibiting signs of emotional distress or suicide risk, we urge you to use the Open Your Heart Conversation Starter as a helpful guide for a meaningful conversation.
These tips—including how to prepare for the conversation, find the right time, choose the right language, actively listen and navigate resistance—can be used to help you check in with a colleague or loved one. Please join us in using and sharing the guide to help facilitate these conversations. The conversation starter is also available on the MMA’s Practice Well Collaboratory site.
If you would like to schedule a suicide prevention training at your clinic, the MMA Foundation offers suicide prevention trainings to MMA members, at no cost. These training workshops, led by Joshua Stein, MD, include Question-Persuade-Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention and Counseling on Access to Lethal Means (CALM) training. QPR is a 1.5-hour, evidence-based presentation that teaches best practices in suicide prevention and three steps to help prevent suicide. CALM is designed to provide counseling strategies to help patients at risk for suicide and their families reduce access to lethal means, particularly (but not exclusively) firearms. Attendees can earn CME credit for both.
The trainings are sponsored by the MMA Foundation and are available to MMA members. For more information, contact Kristen Gloege.
October 9, 2025
The MMA is partnering with Hennepin Healthcare to offer an in-person session on “Supporting Patients, Families, and Professionals in the Aftermath of Crisis” on October 21 from 6 to 8 pm in Room RL110 at the HCMC Red Building, 730 South 8th Street, in Minneapolis.
October 9, 2025
The MMA, in partnership with the Wisconsin Medical Society, will lead a panel discussion titled "The Role of Medical and Professional Societies in Supporting Clinicians and Community Health" at the Transforming Community and Rural Healthcare 2025: Bold Innovation and Partnerships symposium, to be held on October 27-28, at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester.
October 2, 2025
The federal government shutdown will affect the Minnesota healthcare system in several important ways.