Re: OT: Medical know-how raises suicide risk for doctors

From: Joanne Bulley, MD (islesannie@gmail.com)
Fri May 30 14:48:11 2008

I have been treated for depression myself - and have a brother who had a successful suicide and sister with a nearly successful suicide, both while I was in residency and I was aware of this statistic.

And every year I have to check those boxes on the license for continuing to practice in NH and I have often thought of the consequences of answering "yes" to the fact that I was then seeing a psychologist and being treated with meds by a psychiatrist.

We do get into the catch-22 of the problem.

Joanne

At Fri, 30 May 2008, Richard Chudacoff wrote: >
>By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer 2 minutes ago
>
>CHICAGO - There's a grim, rarely talked-about twist to all that medical
>know-how doctors learn to save lives: It makes them especially good at
>ending their own. An estimated 300 to 400 U.S. doctors kill themselves each
>year - a suicide rate thought to be higher than in the general population,
>although exact figures are hard to come by.
>
>"All physicians have access to neat, clean ways to commit suicide," said Dr.
>Robert Lehmberg, a Little Rock, Ark., surgeon who has battled depression and
>long considered suicide "an exit strategy if absolutely necessary."
>
>"It really has been swept under the carpet," said Dr. Paula Clayton, the
>suicide foundation's medical director.
>
>Because the stigma persists, he said he didn't want his name used to avoid
>hurting his family and relationships with colleagues and patients.
>
>Smith succeeded in getting changes to questions on medical license
>applications in Arkansas that he believes will help. The old application
>asked doctors if they were being treated for mental illness or ever had
>been. A "yes" answer required a psychiatrist's note declaring they were fit
>to practice medicine. Now, they need only disclose mental health treatment
>that was advised or required by medical authorities.
>
>The previous form didn't keep doctors with psychiatric problems from
>practicing, Smith said. But it did keep "doctors who needed treatment from
>getting the treatment that they needed."
>
>___
>
>--
>Richard Chudacoff, MD, FACOG
>
>Las Vegas International Center for Advanced Gynecologic Care
>
>(Specializing in minimally and non-invasive surgery)
>
>2481 Professional Court
>Las Vegas, NV 89128
>

--
Joanne Bulley, MD
solo gyn
Keene, NH


Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism
or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.  - - - Martin Luther King, Jr.



use when must restrict search to only the ob-gyn-l forum...
Enter search keywords:
Returns per screen: Require all keywords:

Return to OB-GYN-L Mail a New Message to the Forum: ob-gyn-l@obgyn.net
Forum Administrator: geffrey.klein@obgyn.net
Report Technical Problems: webmaster@obgyn.net
Last Updated: Tue Dec 2 04:56:21 2008

The American Medical Association is no longer designating CME hours for AMA Category II CME credit. However, physicians themselves may self designate learning activities as Category II CME credit hours if they feel it is of sufficient educational merit and meets the formal definitions of continuing medical education. OBGYN.net believes these interaction in this forum meets these criteria. For further information see the AMA web site.

home | medical professionals | women | industry | forums | international
e-mail | about us | advertising | our sponsors | contact us | disclaimer |

This information is provided for educational purposes only.
Please read the disclaimer. ©1996-2008, all rights reserved.
Do not reproduce without permission of MediSpecialty.com