Fewer than 10 percent of orthopedic physicians reported having suicidal thoughts, according to Medscape's "Physician Suicide Report 2022."
Medscape surveyed 13,069 physicians across 29 specialities between June 29 and Sept. 26, 2021.
Five things to know:
1. Five percent of orthopedic surgeons surveyed reported having suicidal thoughts. Other specialities with low suicidal ideation include nephrology (2 percent), rheumatology (5 percent) and ophthalmology (6 percent).
2. Specialties with the highest rates of reported suicidal thoughts include pathology (13 percent), general surgery (12 percent) and oncology (12 percent).
3. Nine percent of physicians surveyed said they thought about suicide but did not attempt it.
4. Similar percentages of male and female physicians reported feeling suicidal (9 percent and 11 percent, respectively). A slightly higher percentage of female physicians said they had colleagues confide in them about having suicidal thoughts (13 percent, compared to 10 percent of male physicians who said the same).
5. Sixty-eight percent of physicians said they spend time with family and friends to keep up their mental health. Investing in hobbies (66 percent) and exercising (63 percent) were other common methods.