title: Substance abuse by anesthesiology residents.
abstract: A 1989 cross-sectional substance abuse survey of 260 former anesthesiology residents of the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) during the previous 30 years yielded 183 responses (70.3%). Over three-fourths (77.2%) of those who responded reported that they had used alcohol when they were residents; 20.0% had used marijuana; and 15.7% had used cocaine. Forty-three of the 178 respondents had used unprescribed psychoactive drugs. Twenty-nine (15.8%) had been self-admitted problematic substance abusers during their residencies: 23, alcohol dependent and six, drug dependent; among the latter were four with a dual (alcohol and drug) dependency. More than 85% considered the drug policy information available during their residencies had been inadequate; institutional drug-control policies were rated "fair-to-poor" by more than 70%. Thirty-five of the residents had observed their teachers using alcohol and/or other drugs to the detriment of their teaching; approximately one-third of these infractions had gone unreported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee 53226.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lutsky
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Abram
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hopwood
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Kampine
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000776:Anesthesiology / Q000193:education*; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014922:Wisconsin / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D011619:Psychotropic Drugs