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Old 26th Mar 2015, 13:28
  #1207 (permalink)  
VinRouge
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Germany
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Could someone from the industry please tell us if there are any consequences for your medical if you ask for help because you feel severly depressed? Imagine this young guy, just two years on the job, feeling more and more depressed. Would he be afraid to seek medical help because this might be the end of his career? This itself would have started a self-enforcing cycle of helplessness and seeing no way out other than suiciding himself. Tighter screening would thus be counter-productive. If this guy was able to turn himself in, get diagnosed properly and e.g. be treated with one of the modern drugs like citalopram or escitalopram he might well be fit to fly (IF he suffered from depression, might be some other condition as well). A few years ago, we had a discussion here on PPRuNe about alcoholism and how it is a medical condition that needs professional help to get out of. And how many pilots delay seeking help because they are afraid of losing their job...
Well lets put it this way, if you were giving someone their class I medical renewal, would you be happy to let them fly if you suspected them of mental illness? Do you think this horrendous incident is going to improve the situation? The industry needs some form of independent service where individuals can seek help and be treated, safeguarding against loss of licence.

For an industry that prides itself on OCD-like standardization and monitoring of behavior, why would a company take a risk on an individual?
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