The sad State of Healthcare in New Mexico: Healthcare Worker Suicide in New Mexico 2004-2005

This study sought to determine if there is a statistically significant relationship between suicide & healthcare occupations in New Mexico for the years 2004-2005. The database that was generated included 658 suicides, 34 of which were healthcare workers. The suicide rate for healthcare workers was higher in 2004 than the suicide rate for the New Mexico adult population but lower in 2005. There were significantly more women among the healthcare workers who died by suicide than among non-healthcare workers. Further investigation would be useful in determining the presence of a trend & in guiding prevention efforts. (16 refs.)