Struggling in Silence: Doctors Who Take Their Own Lives
Newsweek Magazine has an interesting article that discussed the upcoming documentary, Struggling in Silence, that will explore the dark side of the medical profession - the problem of depression and suicide amongst physicians.
The Newsweek article pointed out the true fact that between 300 to 400 doctors take their own lives every year. What I didn’t realize was that the suicide rate amongst male and female physicians are equal, whereas suicide rates among the general population shows males outnumber females four to one in suicide deaths.
Dr. Charles Reynolds, professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and making an appearance in the film (airing next month on public television channels), wrote in The Journal of the American Medical Association that “Undiagnosed and untreated depression is the culprit here”.
That raises this question: Why aren’t depressed doctors seeking treatment? The belief is that doctors are worried (and some believe it’s for very good reasons) about loss of respect, patient referrals, income and their medical license.
In order to raise greater awareness, prevent suffering and hopefully save lives, the new website “doctorswithdepression.org” is working hard to provide help and assistance to physicians, teaching doctors how to recognize depression in themselves and seek help.
Medical schools have launched programs that guarantee students seeking help for depression that it will not appear on their records. In addition to the documentary, an educational video called Out of the Silence: Medical Student Depression and Suicide was designed specifically as an educational tool for use at medical schools. Dr. Reynolds is quoted in the article as saying, “Get help, get well, stay well”.
The Struggling in Silence broadcast is being released in May 2008 for Mental Health Awareness Month by distributor American Public Television.
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