Nurses make a large section of the US workforce. Some studies suggest that nurses are at a higher risk of suicide; however, only a limited amount of data exists on the topic. The objective of this study is to determine the incidence of suicide rates among nurses and compare it with physicians in the general population.
This retrospective cohort study included a total of 159,372 suicides, of which 2,374 suicides were among nurses, 857 were among physicians, and 156,141 were among the general population. The primary outcome of the study was suicide incidence among nurses, along with characteristics associated with suicides.
The findings suggested that suicide was come common in nurses compared with the general population (23.8 vs. 20.1 per 100,000). The suicide among women was higher in nurses (17.1 per 100,000) compared with the general population (8.6 per 100,000). Hence, being a female nurse was associated with 8.5 more suicides per 100,000 compared to general women. Suicide rates of physicians were not significantly different from the general population (8.5 per 100,000 vs. 8.6 per 100,000).
The research concluded that the risk of suicide was higher among nurses, especially females when compared with physicians and the general population.
Ref: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2778209?resultClick=1
