A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Interventions to Reduce or Prevent Symptoms of Common Mental Disorders and Suicidality in Physicians

A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Interventions to Reduce or Prevent Symptoms of Common Mental Disorders and Suicidality in Physicians

Physicians--Mental health

Katherine Petrie, Mikayla Gregory, Daniel A. J. Collins, Aimee Gayed, Samineh Sanatkar, Kimberlie Dean, Mark Deady, Samuel B. Harvey

Nature Mental Health

Vol. 3

No. 7

2025

Springer Nature

Journal article

English

27316076

Open Access

We conducted an updated systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of interventions for reducing or preventing symptoms of common mental disorder (CMD) and suicidality among physicians. Databases were searched for randomized and non-randomized controlled trials of interventions to reduce or prevent depression, anxiety, general psychological distress or suicidality among physicians. The primary outcome was differences in symptoms of CMD following intervention. Random-effects meta-analyses and subgroup and sensitivity analyses were conducted. Twenty-four studies were included in the qualitative synthesis, of which 21 were included in the meta-analysis. Compared with controls, physician-directed interventions significantly reduced symptoms of CMD among physicians at post-intervention (standardized mean difference 0.45; 95% confidence interval 0.26–0.65; P < 0.001; moderate heterogeneity) and follow-up with a small to moderate effect size. Preliminary findings suggest that group-based, face-to-face and skills-based interventions show promise for reducing symptoms of CMD among physicians. Research regarding organizational-level interventions is urgently required. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42018091646.

Julia Arizono