Psychiatric Morbidity of Physicians

Abstract
Physician health, both physical and mental, is an area of continuing interest and concern. From 1956 through 1963, 93 physicians were admitted to our in-patient psychiatric service. The spectrum of psychiatric illness in the group included organic brain syndromes (uncommonly), psychoses, psychoneurotic disorders, and personality pattern disturbances; alcoholism and drug addiction were fairly common. The physician-patient group is representative of the distribution of physicians by practice in our present-day society. Treatment in most instances consisted of psychotherapy, medication, and a supportive environment; electroconvulsive therapy was used in 18 cases.