(Sponsored by: Oregon Medical Association and Oregon Psychiatric Association)
When a physician contemplates suicide or when colleagues or family are concerned immediate intervention by an expert can be of immense value in averting a disaster. Portland psychiatrist Henry J. Grass, M.D., who has studied the phenomenon of suicide in the medical community throughout his career, says an average of two or three physician suicides occur in Oregon every year and some years the number is considerably higher. Anything that can be done to avert such tragedies is of course desirable. The following physicians,
Henry J. Grass, M.D.
(503) 250-8966
Joseph D. Bloom, M.D.
(503) 494-6689,
bloomj@ohsu.edu
George A. Keepers, M.D.
(503) 494-8311 (OHSU operator – page)
have volunteered to act as consultants and advisers to physicians and others in their professional and personal lives to assist in averting suicides among their colleagues. The service is available twenty-four hours a day seven days a week. The volunteers do not serve in rotation so if one of the consultants does not respond within a short period contact another.
Disclaimer: Since this is purely a voluntary effort neither the sponsors nor the volunteers can guarantee immediate access at any time. They have, however, committed as a group to make every effort to be available on an around the clock basis. The roster of qualified consultants will grow over time to further ensure reasonably immediate availability, choice and geographic diversity.
