News
The Hidden Epidemic of Doctor Suicides
More than 900,000 Americans lose their doctors to suicide each year but doctors are finally beginning to talk about it.
by Neal Ungerleider (4th February 2016)
It's no secret that doctors often work shifts of more than 24 hours without time to adequately rest or eat. It's no secret either that many practicing physicians and medical students are tasked with punishing woekloads, and either blame themselves when something goes wrong or become frustrated at a work culture that is rapidly changing.
And for many in the medical community, there's another thing that's no secret. Physicians and residents have a high suicide rate....Full article here
8 in 10 UK doctors experience mental health issues during career
By David Millett, 16 July 2015
A survey of more than 600 UK doctors, carried out by medico-legal organisation the Medical Protection Society (MPS), found that 85% of doctors reported experiencing mental health issues at some point in their career. A total of 32% said they had experienced depression during their medical career, while 13% had experienced suicidal thoughts. Three quarters (75%) said they had suffered from stress, 49% anxiety and 36% from low self-esteem. The results come as the GMC and leading health professionals agreed that a confidential national support service should be established to help doctors with mental health or drug addiction problems. Respondents to the MPS survey mainly cited heavy workload (75%) and long working hours (70%) as the main drivers behind mental health issues they had experienced.Over half (54%) said the high levels of scrutiny and regulation were affecting their mental health. MPS medico-legal advisor Dr Pallavi Bradshaw urged doctors to seek help ‘as soon as they experience mental health difficulties’.