Can depressed doctors get emotional help without license repercussions? Is it even possible for physicians to get confidential mental health care?
I just got this email from a physician:
“Hi Pamela, Wondering if I could curbside you on the topic of seeking mental health services as a physician.
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Dr. Omkar, 30-year old pediatrician trainee died by suicide after years of alleged racial harassment by head of department. Dr. Omkar is from a lower caste tribe, the only son with 2 younger sisters. Elder sister just married the day prior to his suicide. Head of department denied him leave for the wedding even though his peers agreed to cover his shifts.
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As doctors, we deal with things you’d never want to see—mangled teens in car wrecks, new moms diagnosed with cancer, child abuse, and more. So much trauma leads to PTSD. No surprise we have a high suicide rate. We’re three times more likely to die by suicide than our patients.
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Why do doctors laugh about death?
Kobe Bryant’s widow said she didn’t know first responders would refer to her deceased loved ones as “gumbo” or “hamburger meat.”
“It’s Taco Tuesday at The Baja California Bar & Grill, two days after the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant.
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Surgeon: Hello, Dr. Wible! I liked your informed consent article! When I was a surgery resident, I saw a a severely ill hospitalized man who needed a leg amputation and our attending surgeon and senior surgery residents never adequately explained to him why he needed surgery.
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Early in my training, I learned to get patients to quickly sign consent forms without reading them. I didn’t have time to read them either. I didn’t know enough to explain risks or answer questions. Like my peers, I reassured patients that what we were giving them was safe.
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Doctors are trained to lie.
Here are the top 10 ways. See if you recognize any.
1. Doctors lie about work hours.
When logging actual work hours exceeding the weekly “80-hour cap,” new docs are cited for duty-hour violations. Labeled as inefficient,
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One reason physicians were in tears during the 7 hours of support groups I led on my birthday yesterday is they were BELIEVED and received compassion from the peers—for the first time. Sadly, physicians have a bad habit (I’ve witnessed since med school and a gazillion times since) of shunning and even antagonizing human beings at their greatest time of need when they are most vulnerable—especially if that person (in the doctor’s mind) is “not supposed to be”
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We are living in an era of institutional betrayal. Trusted medical institutions tasked with training our healers have failed to protect their own students, staff—and patients. When our clinics and hospitals so deeply contradict what is expected,
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This past week several residents have contacted me in the aftermath of a recent suicide of their co-resident to express fears of retaliation for standing up for their rights and the rights of the deceased resident who killed himself as a direct result of how his residency and hospital mistreated him.
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Who has the best work ethic? The doctor who does 9 surgeries while injected with a painkiller for appendicitis? Or the cardiologist who vomits 4 pints of blood after a 64-hour shift? The pulmonologist running an ICU during a life-threatening asthma attack? Or the orthopaedist who completes a total hip replacement during active labor?
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On this day of unity, inclusion, and freedom—I am so honored to celebrate our oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of slavery in the USA. On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, to announce the slaves were now free! On that day, Union Major-General Gordon Granger read this General Order No.
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Dr. Christopher Firlit, age 37, a PGY6 senior oral maxillofacial surgery resident in Detroit, Michigan, was to graduate in 3 months. He developed a fever and his chief fellow drove him to Providence Hospital where he died on April 3 of suspected COVID-19. He was employed at Ascension Macomb-Oakland Hospital.
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To join us, please contact Dr. Wible here with a short description of your situation and she’ll send you a private link to join our call tonight. Check out: How to defend yourself from hazardous working conditions & 10 Emotional Stages of a Pandemic
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Doctor revived after suicide. Here's what he says.
