Why Medical Professionals are facing Mental Health crisis

The Silent Epidemic: Mental Health Crisis Among Medical Professionals in India

- VIVEK SHUKLA

In the high-stakes world of Indian healthcare, where lives hang in the balance amid overcrowded wards and relentless demands, a hidden crisis festers.

Medical professionals-doctors, nurses, and residents-who pledge to heal others are increasingly succumbing to their own unseen wounds. Depression, anxiety, burnout, and even suicide have become alarmingly common, turning saviours into silent sufferers.

Alarming Statistics: The Scale of Suffering

The scale of the problem is staggering. A comprehensive scoping review of 122 studies from 2000 to 2024 reveals that over half of surveyed Indian doctors exhibit significant depression and anxiety symptoms. Among junior doctors, depression affects 11.4%, while residents face a staggering 53% prevalence. Anxiety strikes 40.35% of juniors and 45% of residents. Burnout, that soul-crushing exhaustion, impacts 30% of postgraduate residents, with rates soaring to 42% in pathology and over 90% reporting some degree in high-pressure specialties like anesthesiology. A 2024 report paints an even grimmer picture: 30% of doctors battle burnout, another 30% grapple with depression, and 15% contend with anxiety disorders. Suicidal ideation haunts 16.7% of medical professionals, a grim precursor to tragedy.

Dr. Sunil Mittal, a veteran psychiatrist and President of the Indian Association of Biological Psychiatry, has long championed this issue. Through workshops, media contributions, and clinical advocacy, he underscores the irony: those trained to diagnose mental illness often ignore their own. As India grapples with a doctor-to-patient ratio of 1:1,456-far below the WHO's recommended 1:1,000-this epidemic threatens not just the workforce but the nation's health fabric.

The Tragic Toll: Rising Suicide Rates