Minister discloses figures of dental suicides
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- Published: Wednesday, 17 October 2018 07:37
- Written by News Editor
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In reply to a Parliamentary Question from Bernard Jenkin MP for Harwich and North Essex, health minister Stephen Barclay disclosed that, in the five calendar years 2013/17, a total of 19 suicide deaths of dentists in England and 3 in Wales were recorded. This compares with 83 doctors in England and 6 in Wales.
The minister said that the Office for National Statistics had collected data relating to the number of suicides registered in England and Wales between 2013 – 2017 where the occupation was recorded as medical practitioner or dental practitioner on the death certificate.
He added that figures are for deaths registered, rather than deaths occurring in each calendar year. Due to the length of time it takes to complete a coroner’s inquest, it can take months or even years for a suicide to be registered. More details can be found in the ‘suicide registrations in the UK’ statistical bulletin at the following link:
Data on the average age of death by each occupation is not recorded by the ONS. Deaths registered in England and Wales between 2013 and 2017, indicate the average age of death by suicide was 45 years for medical practitioners and 49 years for dental practitioners.
Mr Barclay claimed that the health and wellbeing of all NHS our staff “is a top priority” and, in July, NHS England had published its NHS staff health and wellbeing framework which complemented our recent announcement of quicker access to mental health services such as counselling and talking therapies for staff who need them. This, he said, would help deliver our manifesto promise to “introduce new services for employees to give them the support they need including quicker access to mental health services”.
Although it is not relevant to dentists, he pointed out that in 2017, NHS England had launched the ‘NHS GP Health service’, a nationally-funded confidential service which specialises in supporting general practitioners (GPs) and trainee GPs experiencing mental ill health and which has already helped more than 1,500 GPs.
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