CNN (12/14, Scutti) reports a recent study found hundreds of commercial pilots “may be clinically depressed.” Researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health warned that many depressed pilots “may decline seeking treatment due to fears of negative career consequences, such as being grounded.” Out of about 1,848 participants who answered questions about mental health, 233 pilots, or 16 percent, met the criteria for likely depression, while 75 pilots, or 4.1 percent, “reported having suicidal thoughts within the previous two weeks.”
Reuters (12/14, Rapaport) reports senior study author Joseph Allen said that with about 140,000 active pilots flying more than 3 billion people globally each year, “the survey results should put the airline industry on notice that many pilots need better access to mental health screening and treatment.” The findings notably come “a year and a half after a Germanwings co-pilot who suffered from depression deliberately crashed a plane into the French Alps, killing 150 people.”
Related Links:
— “Airline pilots anonymously report suicidal thoughts, study finds,”Susan Scutti, CNN, December 14, 2016.