According to a new study from scholars at the University of Michigan and the Medical University of South Carolina, women physicians in the United States have higher rates of suicide than women in the general population.
The authors examined data from the National Violent Death Reporting System regarding suicides in the United States between 2017 and 2021. During that time period, there were 448 physicians who committed suicide and 97,467 other suicides among the general population. Among women, physicians were more likely to die by suicide than all women in the U.S. in 2017 and 2019, and they had an overall higher rate of suicide from 2017 to 2021. However, the opposite was found among male suicides, with male physicians less likely to die by suicide than the overall male population over the same time period.
Contributing to their findings, the authors identified several suicide risk factors that were more common among physicians than the overall American population. Physicians were more likely to be depressed and more commonly encountered legal issues and job concerns. They were also more likely to die by the use of poison or sharp instruments. Furthermore, physicians had higher rates of toxicology and drug use at the time of their death.
The research team’s findings suggest there needs to be more specific and proactive suicide prevention strategies for physicians, particularly among those with poor mental health, as well as those experincing personal and professional hardships.