Thread by @rcpsych

We're now into the split sessions #RCPsychIC and this thread is covering The Nature of Suicide and Work with Those Bereaved by a Doctors Suicide - and our first to talk is @ClareGerada - a difficult subject but we have experienced and knowledgeable speakers.

@ClareGerada 'We learn to make our patient our first concern - being a dr is not something you do, it is something you are, and because of that, i think doctors have a higher propensity to kill themselves' says @ClareGerada #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada There's a lot of research - female drs are 2-4 times more likely to die by suicide than the general population says @ClareGerada - even though we have a host of protected factors, eg job security, good educations, good social networks - so higher rate needs exploring #rcpsychic

@ClareGerada I've been running a group for those bereaved by the death by suicide of a dr says @ClareGerada - and I am always left with the question, why did these doctors kill themselves? #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada Some drs who died by suicide had mental illness - often depression, sometimes unbelievable anxiety. But at least 50% have no mental illness we were aware of, says @ClareGerada - so I come back to the question, why? #rcpsychic

@ClareGerada For drs, working provides meaning to their life, + it gives them identity + a sense of belonging @ClareGerada. When work is taken away or becomes futile, some drs find it too much to bear. A work-related complaint is often found in the backgrnd as a cause for suicide #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada "I think for drs whose job is taken away or becomes futile, they find the transition from their life having great meaning to it (in their mind) having no meaning becomes too much to bear". A sensitive + thoughtful talk from @ClareGerada #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada We are now listening to Dr Rachel Gibbons, who is talking about the difficulties doctors face when a patient dies by suicide - having experienced this awful situation herself. "Part of me died,' she said. #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada In the wake of the traumatic experience Dr Gibbons spoke to other drs who have had similar experiences. It led her eventually to a deeper understanding of a v difficult subject, which is rarely spoken abt. #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada You don't know what is going on in someone else's mind, says Dr Gibbons. People are always surprised when a loved one dies by suicide, even though they later create narratives that they should have foreseen it. #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada Suicide is a human condition, not a mental health condition. About 73% of people who die by suicide in the UK have no record of being treated by mental health services previously, says Dr Gibbons #RCPsychIC

@ClareGerada No one is to blame for the death by suicide of someone else, concludes Dr Gibbons. Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom with #RCPsychIC and for the work you've done on this important subject, Dr Gibbons.

@ClareGerada Dr Gibbons has played a leading role in helping to produce a section on the @rcpsych website to support psychiatrists when a patient dies by suicide. You can access a range of resources here rcpsych.ac.uk/members/suppor…