Many Depressed Physicians Don't Get Treatment
Physicians often do not seek treatment for depression because doing so can lead to licensure restrictions, limits on hospital privileges, and extra follow-up examinations.
"Physicians cannot talk honestly about what is happening," says Pamela Wible, MD, a family physician in Eugene, Oregon, who speaks on physician depression and runs a suicide hotline for doctors. In an informal survey of physicians, Dr Wible found that a majority had been depressed at some point in their career, but only about a third sought professional help.[2]
"Some physicians with depression drive hundreds of miles to get treatment so that they won't be identified," Dr Wible said.
Does Depression Affect Patient Care?
In Medscape's Burnout & Depression Report, one third of depressed physicians said their condition affected patient care. Specifically, 33% said they were more easily exasperated by patients, 32% said they were less engaged with patients, and 29% said they were less friendly with patients. (Physicians could select more than one answer.) More concerning, 14% said that due to depression, they might make errors that they wouldn't ordinarily make, and 5% said they've made errors that could harm patients.
Higher numbers of respondents said their depression affected dealings with colleagues and staff. Fully 42% indicated exasperation with colleagues, another 42% indicated less engagement with colleagues, and 37% said they expressed their frustration in front of staff or peers.
