Dr Sarah Hetrick is an academic clinical psychologist who has worked with young people in a primary mental health service while undertaking evidence synthesis and primary research focusing on youth mental health and suicide prevention. She is a Professor in Youth Mental Health in the Department of Psychological Medicine and is a co-director of Te Ata Hāpara Suicide Prevention Research Centre at the University of Auckland, a centre of research excellence whose programme of research utilises clinical and public health approaches to suicide prevention and a diverse range of methodologies.

Prof Hetrick has had an advisory role within the Ministry of Health focused on suicide prevention, has been a coordinating editor of the Cochrane Common Mental Disorders group, was the co-lead of a large programme of government funded work to design digital mental health tools for young people has contributed to clinical guideline development for the Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatry, written treatment manuals for youth depression, has served on suicide mortality review committees, contributes to training practitioners such as clinical psychologists, and holds advisory positions for a range of international research organisations and projects.