Daijiworld Media Network - Kochi

Kochi, Jun 27: Concerned over an increasing number of suicides among doctors and healthcare professionals involving anaesthetic drugs, a group of anaesthetists has called for tighter regulation of these high-risk medicines, warning that unrestricted access within hospitals has become a significant occupational safety concern.

The doctors have also urged the government and medical authorities to undertake a comprehensive scientific study into suicides within the medical profession, arguing that the issue goes beyond mental health and exposes critical gaps in the regulation and monitoring of anaesthetic drugs.

According to the anaesthetists, more than 20 doctors and healthcare professionals in Kerala and other parts of the country are believed to have died by suicide in recent years. They added that the number of unsuccessful suicide attempts among medical personnel is likely to be substantially higher than officially documented, highlighting the need for systematic research into what they describe as an emerging public health issue.

Dr S. Anzar, an anaesthetist at Government Medical College, Pariyaram, said healthcare professionals possess specialised knowledge of anaesthetic medications and have legitimate access to them during the course of their work, creating a unique occupational risk that has received inadequate policy attention.

He noted that while these medicines are indispensable for patient care, existing systems do not sufficiently regulate access to them once they are available within hospitals.

"This is no longer solely a mental health issue. It is also a matter of access, accountability and regulatory oversight," Dr Anzar said.

He observed that the pattern of suicides among medical professionals has changed noticeably in recent years. While earlier cases generally involved methods commonly seen in the wider population, an increasing number of recent deaths appear to involve anaesthetic drugs readily available in hospital settings.

Calling for a multi-pronged approach, Dr Anzar urged governments, hospitals, medical colleges and professional organisations to address doctor suicides as both a mental health challenge and a patient safety concern.

Among the measures proposed, he recommended reclassifying commonly used anaesthetic drugs from Schedule H to the more tightly regulated Schedule X under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules. Such a move, he said, would strengthen control over the storage, prescription and dispensing of these medicines.

He also advocated the installation of Automated Drug Dispensing Cabinets (ADCs) in operation theatres, intensive care units and emergency departments to electronically monitor, record and restrict access to high-risk medications.

Echoing similar concerns, private-sector anaesthetist Dr Harris Azees said the current regulatory framework has failed to keep pace with evolving hospital practices.

He pointed out that most anaesthetic drugs remain classified under Schedule H, allowing them to be dispensed on the prescription of any registered medical practitioner. According to him, this classification no longer adequately reflects the risks associated with these medicines and requires urgent review.

Dr Azees further noted that certain anaesthetic agents provide only a narrow window for successful medical intervention in overdose cases, making preventive safeguards and tighter institutional controls particularly important.

Veteran anaesthetist Dr Thomas Kurian also supported regulatory reforms, recalling that suicides involving anaesthetic drugs were virtually unheard of during his early years in the profession.

He said that most cases at the time involved conventional methods, adding that the changing pattern should prompt serious reflection within both the medical community and policymaking circles.

The doctors stressed that medical professionals endure years of intense academic competition and work in one of the country's most demanding professions. They said protecting the mental well-being of healthcare workers while strengthening safeguards governing access to high-risk medicines should now become an urgent priority for governments, regulators and healthcare institutions.