AMA policy aimed at preventing medical student and physician suicide

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md — The American Medical Association (AMA) adopted policy during its Interim Meeting today aimed at identifying patterns that could predict and ultimately prevent suicide among physicians-in-training. The new policy calls on the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education—the accrediting bodies for medical schools and residency training programs respectively—to collect data on medical student, resident and fellow suicides.

“Studies have shown that physicians face a higher rate of suicide than any profession in the United States. While we have been working hard to reduce burnout and increase access to mental health services for physicians and medical students, it is imperative that we also work toward fully understanding the problem,” said AMA Board Member Ryan J. Ribeira, M.D., M.P.H. “We believe that collecting data on the incidence of suicide among physicians-in-training will help us identify the systemic factors that contribute to this problem, and ultimately save lives.”