SUICIDE AND OCCUPATION - A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death in the United States. Sui cide rates have been reported to be particularly high in professional, managerial, and executive groups. We reviewed English language epidem iological studies on suicide and occupation published since 1982. Some studies suggest that workers in a number of occupations, including ch emistry, farming, and law enforcement, may have elevated suicide rates . The weight of current evidence supports the conclusion that both mal e and female physicians have elevated rates of suicide, with females a t particularly high risk. Elevated rates of suicide in a particular oc cupational group may result from a complex interaction between job fac tors such as work stress and access to means and other risk factors su ch as age and presence of a mental disorder.