By: Sara Hussey, MBA, CAE – ACMS Executive Director
Each September, the Allegheny County Medical Society (ACMS) joins colleagues across the nation in recognizing Physician Suicide Awareness Day and elevating the importance of physician well-being. What began as a month-long campaign has grown into a sustained effort at ACMS – one that is embedded into our year-round programming and our very identity.
This year, as we launch Self-care in Healthcare 2025, our focus is clear: physicians deserve safe, stigma-free access to mental health care, and this is something that will become an ongoing focus at ACMS.
Why This Work Matters
The statistics are sobering. Physicians face disproportionately high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide compared with the general population. A new JAMA review highlighted that only 13% to 36% of physicians with mental health conditions ever seek help, even though evidence-based treatment can cut suicide risk in half.
Female physicians, in particular, face a 53% higher risk of suicide compared with women in the general population. These numbers are not just statistics – they represent colleagues, mentors, and friends.
The reasons for this gap are complex but familiar:
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A medical culture that normalizes inadequate self-care.
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Persistent stigma and fear of professional consequences.
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Logistical barriers, including time constraints and confidentiality concerns.
The JAMA authors concluded with urgency: eliminating barriers to care is one of the most critical and actionable opportunities to prevent physician suicides.
What ACMS Is Doing
At ACMS, we have taken these challenges to heart. Last year, we launched our Physician Wellness Program, offering confidential, no-cost access to therapy and coaching – an alternative to the internal offerings from employer systems. This year, we are expanding:
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New Partners: More practices and institutions are joining us to extend access to their physicians. You’ll see their support identified with a unified badge on our site and theirs, acknowledging them as a partner in this work.
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Awareness & Education: We are ensuring physicians know that help is available, safe, and stigma-free.
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Year-Round Support: Our Self-care in Healthcare campaign is no longer confined to September. Wellness is now a pillar of ACMS programming.
Join Us This September
On September 17 – National Physician Suicide Awareness Day – ACMS will ramp up the awareness across our community. These moments of visibility matter, but the deeper message is more important: you are not alone, and your well-being matters as much as the patients you care for.
We invite all physicians, health systems, and community partners to join us in this work. Reducing barriers to care is not only about saving lives—it is about honoring the humanity of those who dedicate theirs to caring for others.
Together, we can make “self-care in healthcare” more than a campaign. We can make it a standard.
If you wish to learn more about the ACMS PWP Toolkit and Partnership badge, please contact Melanie Mayer at [email protected].