Death by suicide of two medicos in AMC within a week, triggers concerns among students

The deaths by suicide of two postgraduate (PG) medical students at Andhra Medical College (AMC) in Visakhapatnam city within a week have triggered concern among students and faculty bringing once again to focus the stress associated with medical education.

On September 24, P. Sailaja, a final-year postgraduate student of General Medicine, allegedly died by suicide. Her family reportedly suspected that career-related stress may have contributed to her death. The III Town police registered a case and launched an investigation.

On September 27, Y. Sravani, a first-year postgraduate student of ENT, a native of Hyderabad, allegedly died by suicide at her rented accommodation in Visakhapatnam. Her body was found on September 28. According to preliminary police findings, she was reportedly not interested in continuing the course.

According to the students, Sailaja, faced considerable academic pressure, particularly in relation to examinations. They said that she had previously expressed apprehension about a particular examination during her undergraduate studies, and had reportedly taken a break from academics at that time.

In Sravani’s case, police reportedly recovered a note in which Sravani had stated that nobody should be held responsible for her death and described the reason as personal.

The two incidents have left the AMC student community shocked and prompted discussions among PG students about the academic and personal pressures faced by the medical students.

Several PG students told The Hindu that while stress was evident in both cases, they were not aware of allegations of harassment. They said that academic pressure was an inherent part of medical education, and students handled such pressure differently. They also said that the college had mechanisms to support students dealing with stress.

In Sravani’s case, students said her close friends and classmates were aware that she had been under considerable stress. She was reportedly counselled multiple times by the department, they said.

Sravani’s parents however allege that she had been facing severe stress. Her mother reportedly said Sravani had called her on September 25 and told her that she was finding it difficult to continue staying in Visakhapatnam. She had reported planned to return to Hyderabad after collecting her certificates on September 26, her mother said.

Reacting to the incident, AMC Principal Sandhya Devi said Sravani had approached the department on Saturday and requested that her certificates be handed over as she wanted to discontinue the course. She was told that the documents would be given on Monday.

“She never told the reason. She said it was personal,” the principal said.

Refuting rumours of harassment on the campus, Ms. Sandhya Devi said, “All the PGs had dinner together. But unfortunately, she committed the act.”

The police have urged people experiencing distress to seek immediate support from trusted persons or contact the police on 100.