The damaging culture of medicine and physician suicide

Dr. Michael Myers, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at SUNY-Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., explored physician suicide in his new book, “Why Physicians Die by Suicide.”

Not surprisingly, Myers says burnout is a major cause of physicians taking their own life. However, admitting burnout, as many have done according to research done by the Mayo Clinic, is just one symptom of what could be a major problem. Unfortunately, he says, there is a stigma around doctors asking for mental health help from other medical professionals. If burnout is a “badge of courage,” Myers says, physicians admitting they need to see someone for mental health issues is stigmatized.

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By Gabriel Perna / May 1, 2017 / Physician Practice