Why Medicine Leads the Professions in Suicide, and What We Can Do About It

Why Medicine Leads the Professions in Suicide, and What We Can Do About It
Suicide is more prevalent among doctors than any other profession. Burnout could be a reason. Iuri Silvestre/Shutterstock
Richard Gunderman
Updated:
Earlier this month, one of us visited a prominent U.S. medical school to give a lecture on the topic of burnout and how physicians can find more fulfillment in the medical profession. Sadly, that very day, a fourth-year medical student there took her own life.

The problem was not personal failure; she had recently gotten into a competitive residency program at one of the nation’s most prestigious hospitals. Yet apparently, she still found the prospect of the life ahead more than she could bear.

Richard Gunderman, M.D., Ph.D., is Chancellor's Professor of Radiology, Pediatrics, Medical Education, Philosophy, Liberal Arts, Philanthropy, and Medical Humanities and Health Studies at Indiana University. His most recent books are “Marie Curie” and “Contagion.”
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