DOCTORS' DRINKING AND FITNESS TO PRACTISE

( First received 16 August 2005; first review notified 17 August 2005; in final revised form 9 September 2005; accepted 10 September 2005)Rosta and Aasland's paper (2005) ‘Female surgeons’ alcohol use: A Study of a Nation-wide Sample of Norwegian Doctors adds to the evidence that doctors are at increased risk of becoming dependent at some point in their career.The finding that detrimental drinking by surgeons was more prevalent than might be expected may point to important fitness-to-practise considerations.The questions ‘Who cares about doctors as individuals?’ and ‘Who cares for doctors apart from family and friends?’ seem still to be difficult to answer.A doctor's independence and ability to become immersed in a patient's plight are key components for effective medical practice.Becoming a doctor can be an isolating experience.Maintaining confidentiality, enabling others to cope with distress, dealing with uncertainty, and making decisions on the balance of probability, when each decision may have an impact on an individual patient's life, is the stuff of medicine, irrespective of age, experience, discipline, or specialty.Doctors are subject to an escalating compensation focus. Growing public acceptance of the conclusion that everything is predictable and, therefore, preventable, may be a contributing factor.Hidden clinical …