Earlier this month, Weill Cornell Medicine, in partnership with the Association of American Medical Colleges, Associated Medical Schools of New York, and American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, hosted the
National Conference on Medical Student Mental Health and Well-Being.
Medical students experience higher rates of psychological distress, including anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, compared to peers in the general population. While much needed attention is currently being focused on clinician well-being within the medical community, it is time to concentrate more fully on medical students as well.
The National Conference on Medical Student Mental Health and Well-Being is the first comprehensive, multidisciplinary forum to examine the mental health needs of medical students. Bringing together leading experts in the field, medical school administrators and faculty, mental health professionals, and medical students, it seeks to better understand the causes of psychological distress in this population. Key goals are to identify new and improved strategies for detection, treatment, and prevention of mental illness in medical students, as well as innovative methods for fostering greater resilience and well-being, that can be implemented at medical schools around the country.
