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Program aims to prevent physician depression, suicide

Residency Program Insider, October 28, 2016

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With the suicide rate among physicians far exceeding that of the general public, the University of California San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine’s Healer Education Assessment and Referral (HEAR) program was created to detect early signs of depression and risk of suicide among its medical students, residents, fellows, and faculty.

HEAR includes an online questionnaire developed by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention that gathers confidential information to determine if stress and depression are affecting the respondents’ personal and professional lives. Although the questionnaire is anonymous, respondents may leave an email address to receive an interpretation of their assessment from a counselor and recommendations for further evaluation, if needed.

Nearly 8% of medical students who completed the questionnaire met the criteria for high or significant risk of suicide. Of those students, less than a quarter were already receiving mental health treatment.

Source: AMA Wire

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