Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Dr. Karin Orvis, Director of the Defense Suicide Prevention Office, joins the show to talk about how the Department of Defense is addressing suicide in the currently serving military population
Show Notes
Dr. Karin A. Orvis, a member of the Senior Executive Service, is the Director of the Defense Suicide Prevention Office in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. In this capacity, Dr. Orvis is responsible for policy, oversight, and advocacy of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) suicide prevention programs. Her current portfolio spans the full spectrum of suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention efforts including policy, program development and evaluation, data surveillance, research, and outreach and engagement. In this position, and in her prior DoD roles, she strategically leads multidisciplinary, interservice/interagency teams in designing, implementing, and evaluating DoD-wide policies and programs in support of over 2M service members and over 2.5M military family members worldwide.
Dr. Orvis brings nearly 20 years of progressively broader experience spanning the federal government, academia, and private sector. Prior to her current assignment, Dr. Orvis served as the Acting Principal Director of Military Community and Family Policy, where she was responsible for the policy, oversight, and advocacy of military community quality-of-life programs for service members and their families. Dr. Orvis also previously served as the Director of the Transition to Veterans Program Office, where she was instrumental in redesigning the DoD Transition Assistance Program, which ensures that service members are ‘career ready’ and prepared to transition from active duty to civilian life.
Dr. Orvis brings nearly 20 years of progressively broader experience spanning the federal government, academia, and private sector. Prior to her current assignment, Dr. Orvis served as the Acting Principal Director of Military Community and Family Policy, where she was responsible for the policy, oversight, and advocacy of military community quality-of-life programs for service members and their families. Dr. Orvis also previously served as the Director of the Transition to Veterans Program Office, where she was instrumental in redesigning the DoD Transition Assistance Program, which ensures that service members are ‘career ready’ and prepared to transition from active duty to civilian life.
Other prior DoD positions include the Director of Evaluation and Assessment for the Transition to Veterans Program Office and the Program Manager of the Basic Research program at the U.S. Army Research Institute. Dr. Orvis transitioned to the federal government after spending four years as a University Assistant Professor at Old Dominion University. Dr. Orvis has also worked with the private sector on programs related to employee training, leader development, staffing, and organizational effectiveness. Her work has been published in journals such as Leadership Quarterly, Military Psychology, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Business and Psychology, and the International Journal of Training and Development.
Dr. Orvis holds a Doctorate and a Master of Arts in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from George Mason University, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Michigan State University. She has received various awards throughout her career including the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service, Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Excellence, Department of the Army Commander’s Award for Civilian Service, and American Society for Training and Development Dissertation Award.
Links Mentioned in this Episode:
Join our Facebook Group:
Shauna's latest book: Warrior: How to Support Those Who Protect Us
Duane's latest book: Military in the Rear View Mirror: Mental Health and Wellness in Post-Military Life
How to Leave a Podcast Review
Leaving a podcast review at iTunes isn't intuitive. But positive ratings are hugely important: they help the podcast get discovered by new people. Please spend 5 minutes of your time to leave a review using one of the methods below.
How to leave a podcast review using Apple’s Podcast app
1. Navigate to Seeking the Military Suicide Solution on Apple Podcasts on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Click "Listen on Apple Podcasts"
3. Scroll down and click or tap "Write a Review." Enter your iTunes password to login.
4. Rate the podcast using 1 to 5 stars.
5. Submit a brief honest review.
Bonus: get a thank-you note
Your feedback is greatly appreciated. When you leave a review, drop us a line at info@veteranmentalhealth.com and you'll get a message with the warmest appreciation, and a bonus gift!
For Android users, Google Podcasts does not allow for ratings or reviews, but you can certainly let us know how you think we're doing on Spotify, Stitcher, or iHeartRadio
Many thanks,
Duane and Shauna
★ Support this podcast ★
What is Seeking the Military Suicide Solution?
The statistics about suicide in the military affiliated population are alarming, and many are aware of them. Awareness is no longer enough, however. Communities must pair that awareness with meaningful action in order to make a difference. Brought to you by Military Times, join combat veteran and clinical mental health counselor Duane France and nationally recognized suicide prevention expert Dr. Shauna Springer every week as they bring the knowledge of experts on suicide in the military affiliated population to communities that need it.