General Discussion

RobinA

(10,478 posts)

35. I Have Long Believed

Thu Mar 17, 2016, 03:47 PM

Mar 2016

that medical school needs to take a serious look at this. My father is a doctor, graduating from medical school in 1960. I was born in 1958. For years my sister and I used to play with the other doctors' kids of the same age because all the med school friends would socialize at each others houses. Great bunch of guys (to my young eyes) and kids and mothers. The kids got older and people drifted, but they still knew each other. Come the '80's and alcohol set in. One suicide in this small group, several (most) with drinking problems, one falling down drunken drug abuser. These were not people who grew up drinking a six pack a night and graduated to a case, they were high functioners who developed a problem in middle age. Something wrong here in this profession. I look back at those young guys, and yes, they were all guys at the time, and it's just a damn shame.

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How many more physicians will we lose to suicide? [View all] HuckleB Mar 2016 OP

maybe... they're.. artyteacher Mar 2016 #1

might well be...prescription drugs lead lots of people into darkness AxionExcel Mar 2016 #2

Damn! Pac-Man is a total bastard! Orrex Mar 2016 #17

. HuckleB Mar 2016 #22

DUzy. surrealAmerican Mar 2016 #37

Not PacMan, but the pharmaceutical drugs AxionExcel Mar 2016 #53

Free clue. Requires reading ability. AxionExcel Mar 2016 #54

wakka wakka wakka Orrex Mar 2016 #55

Go PacMan!!!! GO! HuckleB Mar 2016 #60

Wow. HuckleB Mar 2016 #4

Just like dentists going crazy from amalgam fumes Orrex Mar 2016 #18

And sometimes they save lives. easttexaslefty Mar 2016 #34

The physician I had as a child committed suicide immediately Lint Head Mar 2016 #3

Too few of us understand the daily toll health care workers face. HuckleB Mar 2016 #5

Attorneys are pretty high up there too. My profession has one of the highest, if not the highest Dustlawyer Mar 2016 #36

Had no idea this was an issue. Rex Mar 2016 #6

I could make proposals, but it does seem like this should be part of the conversation... HuckleB Mar 2016 #8

So what is the answer then? More hiring? Robots? Rex Mar 2016 #10

It will have to be comprehensive. HuckleB Mar 2016 #11

Sleep use to be my greatest foe. I wonder if most working Americans suffer from sleep deprivation? Rex Mar 2016 #14

Yeah, I went back to grad school at 33. HuckleB Mar 2016 #19

As the son of a physician, this hits particularly close to home for me YoungDemCA Mar 2016 #7

I know it's an issue. A doctor committed suicide in our parking garage at my apartment last year. LisaM Mar 2016 #9

Most physicians are good at blowing off pharma reps. HuckleB Mar 2016 #12

My physician husband took his life 2 years ago.nt Mojorabbit Mar 2016 #13

My sincere condolences. HuckleB Mar 2016 #20

So sorry for your loss Majorabbit. progressoid Mar 2016 #23

I am so sorry to hear that. n/t reflection Mar 2016 #62

my condolences Mojorabbit steve2470 Mar 2016 #64

my daughter's physician quit greymattermom Mar 2016 #15

I work in a medical profession. Most, if not all, my colleagues, co-workers, associates are on Hiraeth Mar 2016 #16

One source of their situation? ChairmanAgnostic Mar 2016 #51

yes. We are expected to do our job like a production job. We are expected to be able Hiraeth Mar 2016 #52

It's a difficult proffession to say the very least. linuxman Mar 2016 #21

I married into a family of physicians. progressoid Mar 2016 #24

So did I. I'm also 840high Mar 2016 #25

And into the next generation... progressoid Mar 2016 #28

My brother-in-law was a very 840high Mar 2016 #30

The 2 I had used a pistol to do it. This was like 12 years ago. LiberalArkie Mar 2016 #26

It seems we could afford to pay much of the cost of medical school with what we spend on war. jalan48 Mar 2016 #27

We could certainly improve many things with that money! HuckleB Mar 2016 #46

there's so much we could afford if to do if we weren't so pre-occupied with our empire Fast Walker 52 Mar 2016 #48

It's the bullshit from the corporatization of medicine moonbeam23 Mar 2016 #29

Great for him........ mrmpa Mar 2016 #32

I know a lot of doctors are upset about new regulations and blame the ACA Fast Walker 52 Mar 2016 #50

The ACA hasn't made things any more onerous. HuckleB Mar 2016 #56

I agree. But the more wingnut-oriented MDs are only too happen to blame their problems on the ACA. Fast Walker 52 Mar 2016 #57

I work at a small clinic, and we went to E-records three years ago. HuckleB Mar 2016 #58

This will not get butter. AngryAmish Mar 2016 #31

I don't see docs being hampered by evidence based guidelines. HuckleB Mar 2016 #33

I Have Long Believed RobinA Mar 2016 #35

+1,000 ... 000 HuckleB Mar 2016 #38

There are not enough doctors to go around. Odin2005 Mar 2016 #39

I 'd like to see that link. HuckleB Mar 2016 #40

It was something I heard back in '09 or so, I can't remember the source, unfortunately. Odin2005 Mar 2016 #42

The charge was originally by Jeffrey Berlant in "Profession and Monopoly" in 1975 Recursion Mar 2016 #47

so we shouldn't be worrying abt the "physician shortage"? redruddyred Mar 2016 #70

The suicide statistic is true across all Western nations Nevernose Mar 2016 #41

Damn, a good hypothesis slayed by pesky facts. Odin2005 Mar 2016 #43

can you post the source of equal rates in western countries? JanMichael Mar 2016 #45

Ton of links at bottom Nevernose Mar 2016 #61

This Actually Fits RobinA Mar 2016 #59

I work at a medical School and was on the admissions committee for a couple years Fast Walker 52 Mar 2016 #49

is the rate of self destruction the same in other countries? JanMichael Mar 2016 #44

Most physicians, especially surgeons, have high stress jobs and access to drugs. nt tblue37 Mar 2016 #63

seems like these docs have a p good handle on how well shrinks respect their own patients redruddyred Mar 2016 #65

Can you clarify this post? HuckleB Mar 2016 #66

docs are by and large an arrogant bunch and psychiatrists are no exception redruddyred Mar 2016 #67

Some are, some not so much. HuckleB Mar 2016 #68

i've noticed that women and esp minority women docs don't tend to have redruddyred Mar 2016 #69

It's always good to have down-to-earth folks. HuckleB Mar 2016 #71

do you treat me/cfs patients? are you open to them? if so, would you like to namedrop? redruddyred Mar 2016 #72

I'm in pediatrics, so those things don't pop up on the radar, as far as I know. HuckleB Mar 2016 #73

pediatric cases too redruddyred Mar 2016 #74