Medical Student Suicide

[Backpack5]

Hi,

Does anyone know any studies or data on the number of medical student suicides per year? I was talking to a medical student about burnout and suicide and I could not find any data sources that had this number or at least a ballpark estimate.

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[charmiedermie]

Hi,

Does anyone know any studies or data on the number of medical student suicides per year? I was talking to a medical student about burnout and suicide and I could not find any data sources that had this number or at least a ballpark estimate.

I think there is data on physician suicide but not necessarily med student suicide per year in terms of verified numbers. I imagine medical schools are very reluctant to release such statistics voluntarily.

 

[AlexMack12]

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has launched some campaigns specifically to heighten awareness of physician suicide and medical student depression:
https://www.afsp.org/preventing-sui...an-and-medical-student-depression-and-suicide

There aren't statistics on medical student suicide as far as I know, but there is data about physician suicide and some great information about medical student depression.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=186586
This article describes a study of suicidal ideation and stigma among medical students.

As an aside....seems like the OP was just having a discussion with a friend about this topic but for anyone who stumbled across this thread because of personal concerns or concerns about a friend/peer/colleague, don't be afraid to contact your school's counseling center (or pass on the info to someone who needs it). Most medical school counseling centers are aware of the immense strain medical students are under as well as their concerns about confidentiality and fears of professional/personal repercussions. And lots of times, it can really be effective for one peer to pass on this information to another.
There's also the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, toll-free: 1-800-273-TALK

The more we all talk about it with each other, the more we can chip away at the stigma preventing very resilient, competent, but simply occasionally stressed, burdened, and overwhelmed providers from getting a little help sometimes.