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SAN ANTONIO
MEDICINE

Preventing Physician

and Medical Student Suicide:

An Urgently Important Conversation

By Alissa Roemer, Emily Heydemann and Veronica Gonzalez

On the evening of September 29, 2022, students and residents from Alissa Roemer is a student at the University of the Incarnate
UIW School of Osteopathic Medicine, UT Health Lozano Long Word School of Osteopathic Medicine, Class of 2025
School of Medicine and Texas Institute for Graduate Medical Educa-
tion and Research (TIGMER) joined together to bring awareness to Emily Heydemann, MSW, is a student at UT Health San
the significant issue of physician suicide. Tragically, 300 to 400 physi- Antonio Long School of Medicine, Class of 2023
cians die by suicide every year, and physician burnout has become an
even more serious problem as a result of the pandemic. The purpose of Veronica Gonzalez, LPC, LCDC is a student at the Univer-
this event was to raise awareness, teach us how to recognize and help sity of the Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine, Class
colleagues in distress, provide us a forum for ending stigma and pro- of 2025
mote healing in our community. The event featured expert speakers,
personal reflections and offered students the opportunity to ask ques-
tions and share their concerns about mental healthcare access.
Following the event, a gallery of student and physician-created art-
work was displayed, some of which we would like to share with you
now. Through this creative outlet, medical students and physicians were
able to express their emotional responses to a difficult topic. By con-
tinuing the conversation, we hope that those in our field will feel em-
powered to openly discuss and share their own mental health
challenges. Together we can continue to cultivate a supportive environ-
ment and work to reduce physician suicide.
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