Please find below a little bit about each of us and where our passion for this work lies. If you'd like to get in touch with any of us, please email: nspo@nspo.gov.au
We look forward to working with you.
Dr Alex Hains
Head of the National Suicide Prevention Office
Alex grew up in Adelaide, but now lives on Dharrawal Country in Wollongong with his wife and 3 sons. Head of the National Suicide Prevention Office, a specialist unit created to assist governments achieve a more comprehensive and coordinated national approach to suicide prevention. In this work, he has led a policy agenda that emphasises compassion, collaboration, high-quality supports, and a more genuinely preventative approach to suicide. His work has previously focused on children, young people and families; the unique needs of priority populations; and embedding lived experience into the mental health and suicide prevention systems.
Hayley Love
Senior Program Support Officer
Hayley Love is the Senior Program Support Officer responsible for delivering efficient and effective administrative and executive support to the Head of the NSPO, and, as part of the Partnerships and Engagement team, for assisting the team achieve its core engagement, communications and reporting objectives. Hayley is an experienced public servant with over 12 years’ experience working across many Commonwealth Departments. She is committed to developing meaningful working relationships with all stakeholders including with people with lived and living experience, the NSPO advisory boards, the Minister’s Office, across portfolios and jurisdictions, and with internal and external stakeholders. Hayley is highly motivated in providing support for the National Suicide Prevention Office’s vision of reducing suicidal distress and preventing suicide in Australia by empowering a coordinated whole-of-governments approach.
SYSTEM REFORM
Michael Cook
Director, System Reform
Michael Cook is the Director of System Reform with the National Suicide Prevention Office. Michael draws on more than 10 years of work in suicide prevention spanning State and Commonwealth Governments and NGOs, with a particular focus on systems change, service design, research translation and implementation. With a commitment to driving a more comprehensive and preventative approach to suicide prevention by fostering meaningful collaboration between communities and decision-makers, and addressing the inequities that give rise to suicidal distress in the first place. Michael resides on Dharawal Country in Southern Sydney with his wife and 3 kids.
James Burchmore CSM
Assistant Director, System Reform
James Burchmore CSM is an Assistant Director in the System Reform team with expertise in suicide prevention policy, evaluation, and outcomes measurement. He has contributed to major national initiatives, including the National Suicide Prevention Strategy 2025-2035, the National Suicide Prevention Outcomes Framework, and the National Suicide and Self-harm Monitoring System, helping strengthen how Australia measures, monitors and improves suicide prevention outcomes. His work brings together policy, research, data and lived experience insights to support evidence-informed decision-making. James is passionate about translating complex evidence into practical solutions that improve wellbeing and deliver meaningful outcomes for individuals, families, and communities across Australia.
Caitlin Bambridge
Assistant Director, System Reform
Caitlin is an Assistant Director in the System Reform team at the National Suicide Prevention Office. Their lived experience of suicide drives their passion and dedication for meaningful reform of our suicide prevention system. Prior to joining the NSPO, Caitlin worked on developing suicide prevention legislation at NSW Government in the Mental Health Branch, spent over 4 years working in policy and government relations at the national peak Suicide Prevention Australia, and worked in policy and research roles at ACON and Mental Health Carers NSW. Caitlin is committed to implementing a whole of government approach to suicide prevention to address the social determinants of health that can lead to suicide.
Genevieve Johnsson
Assistant Director, System Reform
Genevieve is an Assistant Director in the National Suicide Prevention Office, focussing on enabling a capable, confident and connected workforce across the suicide prevention system. Prior to joining the National Suicide Prevention Office, she worked in the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing on major national reforms including the National Health Reform Agreement and the National Roadmap for Improving the Health of People with Intellectual Disability. A registered psychologist with more than 17 years of experience in clinical, community, research and policy settings, Genevieve has worked extensively with children and young people with disability and their support networks. She is particularly passionate about translating evidence, lived experience and best practice into practical reforms that improve equity, access and outcomes.
Millie Baldwin
Senior Policy Officer, System Reform
Millie is a Senior Policy Officer in the Systems Reform team in the National Suicide Prevention Office. Millie’s experience includes mental health research, policy advisory roles across youth mental health non-government organisations, mental health helpline work, and health policy roles within the Australian Government. She brings a strong public health perspective, recognising the complex interplay of social determinants that influence mental health outcomes and suicide risk. Guided by a commitment to equity and evidence-based policy, Millie is passionate about advancing a public health approach to suicide prevention that reflects the voices of people with lived and living experience of suicide.
PARTNERSHIPS AND ENGAGEMENT
Ina Mullin
Director, Partnerships and Engagement
Ina leads the relationship development and communication functions of the National Suicide Prevention Office (NSPO). She is committed to ensuring the voice of lived experience is central to the development of recommendations for reform. Ina moved to the NSPO after serving as Director, Communication and Engagement at the National Mental Health Commission. Her career and voluntary work has been grounded in the not-for-profit sector working in a number of services that support the mental health and wellbeing of people who are impacted by a broad range of social determinants. Most recently, she served as National Manager Communications and Public Affairs at Lifeline Australia. Ina is the Deputy Chair of the Board of GROW Australia, a national service providing intentional peer support for people living with mental health challenges.
Seryn Adams
Assistant Director, Partnerships and Engagement Officer
As part of the Partnerships and Engagement team, Seryn works on building and maintaining relationships with a range of stakeholders and partners. Coming to the National Suicide Prevention Office with experience working in suicide prevention in a regional Primary Health Network setting, where she managed and implemented a range of mental health and suicide prevention specific activity. Seryn was initiated into suicide prevention when implementing the LifeSpan research trial across the Murrumbidgee. Having worked within the sector and volunteered across a range of not-for-profit organisations, Seryn values highly the importance of collaboration and partnerships necessary to see the changes required to prevent suicide. It remains at the forefront of all Seryn's work that the voice of lived and living experience guides, informs, and shapes the outputs of the Office. Seryn lives and works by the mantra of rumble with vulnerability, communicate with courage and live into your values.
Lauren Lazarus
Senior Partnerships and Engagement Officer
Lauren is part of the Partnerships and Engagement team at the National Suicide Prevention Office, where she focuses on building and maintaining strong relationships with a diverse range of stakeholders and partners. Lauren brings nearly six years of Government experience across disability housing, younger people in residential aged care, quality and safeguards, and the coordination of high-level Commonwealth forums and committees including the Health Chief Executives Forum and the Health Ministers Meeting. Lauren is guided by values of integrity, collaboration, and equity, and is deeply committed to ensuring that the voices of lived and living experience are central to shaping policy and practice.
Trudy Johnston
Senior Partnerships and Engagement Officer
Trudy Johnston is a member of the Partnerships and Engagement team, where she leads strategic projects, fosters partnerships, and works closely with stakeholders to drive systems change. With over 20 years of experience across community and government settings, Trudy has coordinated programs that improve access to mental health supports, build community capacity, and promote inclusive development. She has worked extensively with diverse groups including refugees and asylum seekers, children and young people including those with out-of-home care experiences, and older people. Her work reflects a deep commitment to collaboration, innovation, and improving outcomes for communities through data-informed, community-driven approaches.
SPECIAL PROJECTS
Tegan Cotterill
Director, Special Projects
As Director of the Special Projects Team, Tegan contributes to developing guidance to enhance service systems and enable workforces to respond compassionately to people in distress. Prior to joining the NSPO, Tegan worked for the National Mental Health Commission on the NSW Health Towards Zero Suicides initiatives and as a coordinator for the LifeSpan Newcastle research trial. Tegan is an experienced social worker with subject matter expertise in suicide prevention developed through working in senior clinical, project and policy roles on local, state, and national initiatives. Tegan is passionate about suicide prevention and working collaboratively with a range of stakeholders including people with a lived experience of suicide to influence government priorities to achieve suicide prevention reform with an emphasis on improving outcomes for populations that are disproportionately impacted by suicide.
Erin Wilson Leary
Assistant Director, Special Projects
Erin grew up in the Blue Mountains, NSW, and has lived and worked in Sydney, London and Vancouver. With a background in Psychology and Social Work, she is passionate about improving outcomes across mental health, wellbeing and related systems. As an Assistant Director in the Special Projects Team she is focused on a project looking at the intersection between suicide prevention and mental health from a systems perspective. Prior to joining the NSPO, she worked across a range of policy roles and teams at the National Mental Health Commission, and previously held positions in state government departments including Health and Education
To get in touch with the National Suicide Prevention Office team, please email: nspo@nspo.gov.au