{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","title":"Wellbeing and Mental Health in Surgeons","description":"Join us as we discuss research on mental health and wellbeing in the surgical workforce with Drs. Yang and Collins. The episode explores key findings from recent national surveys showing that nearly one in seven surgeons report suicidal ideation in the past year, with depression, anxiety, and PTSD affecting 15–20% of the surgical population. The conversation highlights protective factors—professional fulfillment, resilience, self-valuation, and connection—while distinguishing between healthy resilience and normalized suffering. Dr. Yang and Dr. Collins discuss systemic barriers including time constraints, out-of-pocket mental health costs, and persistent stigma, alongside actionable institutional interventions: protecting dedicated wellbeing time, establishing peer support and psychological first aid programs, ensuring free mental health access, and expanding research to understand what helps surgeons thrive. The episode emphasizes that self-care is essential to patient safety and invites listeners to become advocates, engage with the literature, and help drive culture change within their institutions. For more information about the AAS wellbeing survey, please email Dr. Yang at CJYANG@MGH.HARVARD.EDU.\n\nHost:\n\n Steven Thornton, MD (General Surgery Resident at Duke University)\nAgnes Premkumar (General Surgery Resident at Creighton)\n\nGuests:\n\nJeff Yang, MD (Massachusetts General Hospital)\nReagan Collins, MD (University of Pennsylvania)\n\nPublications Discussed:\n\nHughes TM, Collins RA, Cunningham CE. Depression and Suicide Among American Surgeons-A Grave Threat to the Surgeon Workforce. JAMA Surg. 2024 Jan 1;159(1):7-8. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2023.4658. PMID: 37792380. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37792380/]\nCollins RA, Herman T, Snyder RA, Haines KL, Stey A, Arora TK, Geevarghese SK, Phillips JD, Vicente D, Griggs CL, McElroy IE, Wall AE, Hughes TM, Sen S, Valinejad J, Alban A, Swan JS, Mercaldo N, Jalali MS, Chhatwal J, Gazelle GS, Rangel E, Yang CJ, Donelan K, Gold JA, West CP, Cunningham C. Unspoken Truths: Mental Health Among Academic Surgeons. Ann Surg. 2024 Mar 1;279(3):429-436. doi: 10.1097/SLA.0000000000006159. Epub 2023 Nov 23. PMID: 37991182. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37991182/]\nYaghmour NA, Bynum WE 4th, Hafferty FW, Könings KD, Richter T, Brigham TP, Nasca TJ. Causes of Death Among US Medical Residents. JAMA Netw Open. 2025 May 1;8(5):e259238. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.9238. Erratum in: JAMA Netw Open. 2025 Jul 1;8(7):e2523489. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.23489. PMID: 40366660; PMCID: PMC12079293. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40366660/]\nNasca BJ, Hunt ML, Ramirez RT, Eng JS, Li RD, Agarwal G, Bilimoria KY, Hu YY. One is too many: suicidality among general surgery residents. Acad Med. 2025 Dec 24:wvaf105. doi: 10.1093/acamed/wvaf105. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41819820. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41819820/]\n\nPlease visit https://behindtheknife.org (https://behindtheknife.org/) to access other high-yield surgical education podcasts, videos and more.\nIf you liked this episode, check out our recent episodes here: https://behindtheknife.org/listen\nBehind the Knife Premium: https://behindtheknife.org/premium\nOral Board Review:https://behindtheknife.org/oral-board\nOral Board Simulator: https://behindtheknife.org/oral-board/simulator\nGeneral Surgery Oral Board Review Course: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/general-surgery-oral-board-review\nTrauma Surgery Video Atlas: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/trauma-surgery-video-atlas\nDominate Surgery: A High-Yield Guide to Your Surgery Clerkship: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/dominate-surgery-a-high-yield-guide-to-your-surgery-clerkship\nDominate Surgery for APPs: A High-Yield Guide to Your Surgery Rotation: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/dominate-surgery-for-apps-a-high-yield-guide-to-your-surgery-rotation\nVascular Surgery Oral Board Review Course: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/vascular-surgery-oral-board-review\nColorectal Surgery Oral Board Review Course: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/colorectal-surgery-oral-board-review\nSurgical Oncology Oral Board Review Course: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/surgical-oncology-oral-board-review\nCardiothoracic Oral Board Review Course: https://behindtheknife.org/premium/cardiothoracic-surgery-oral-board-review\nDownload our App:\nApple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/behind-the-knife/id1672420049\nAndroid/Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.btk.app&hl=en_US","author_name":"Behind The Knife: The Surgery Podcast","author_url":"https://audioboom.com/channels/5046960-behind-the-knife-the-surgery-podcast","provider_name":"Audioboom","provider_url":"https://audioboom.com","width":480,"height":95,"thumbnail_url":"https://audioboom.com/i/39463562/600x600/c","thumbnail_width":600,"thumbnail_height":600,"html":""}