A recent study has revealed that one out of sixteen surgeons think of committing suicide. MD of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., Tait Shanafelt and colleagues disclosed that surgeons may get suicidal thoughts due to depression, medical errors and burnout.

The study was published in the Archives of Surgery in its January issue and was based on nearly 8,000 surgeons.

The study says that amongst the surgeons contemplating suicide, one in four took psychiatric help to tide over the situation.

The American College of Surgeons had conducted a survey on surgeons in the year 2008 and the results stem from this survey.

The survey comprised a tool for screening depression along with techniques for evaluating burnout and the quality of life of the respondents.

Shanafelt revealed that they were surprised with the results as all the surgeons had jobs, were highly educated and married. He added that all these factors decrease the risk of suicide and therefore the results of the survey were striking.

Also, the study shows that the older surgeons are more prone to suicidal thoughts as compared to their younger counterparts and this another significant finding of the study.