There are many mental health issues that people can suffer
from but one of the most common is depression. Mostly everyone will suffer from
some form of depression in their lifetime which can range from having a bad day
to life crippling depression that needs medical attention. It is important to
screen pilots for depression and depression should not bar pilots from
continuing their job if they have undergone adequate treatment.
Depression is so common that between 10 million and 20
million people in our country need treatment for the disorder. As stated above
there is a huge spectrum when it comes to depression but the important matter
is to determine how depression is affecting the person’s life. (Stoutt) Sometimes the
symptoms are easy to spot. Social people become withdrawn, changes in appetite,
fatigued, etc. In others the symptom are much more subtle or are easy to hide
from examiners and co-workers.
Depression should not be a career ender for pilots. The
Germanwings accident has sparked a debate on how we should treat pilots who
suffer from depression but we should not allow this accident to create fear of
depressed pilots. I think that the stigma associated with depression has a
worse effect on pilots than the possibility of losing their careers. If faced
with the possibility of losing their career many pilots will choose not to seek
treatment and may hide their depression from their employers. Depression in addition
to being the most common mental illness is also the most treatable. About 80 to
90 percent of depression victims can be treated successfully with the
combination of psychotherapy and psychopharmacology.
There needs to be a change in the way we screen pilots for
depression. No amount of testing can completely guarantee that pilots with
mental health issues will be flying but there is much more that we can do which
has been highlighted by the crash of Germanwings flight 9525. One problem is
that there is no incentive for pilots to report their depression. It may not immediately
cause them to be terminated but it can be a black mark on their medical records
and remove them from their flight schedule. Another problem that I see is that
there is no test dedicated to screening for mental health. This should change
because depression can happen at any point in someone’s life. Currently pilots
go through annual or semiannual medical exams with mental health questions about
depression, substance abuse, and suicidal thoughts but it is up to pilots to
answer these questions truthfully. (Davies, 2015)
In 2010 the FAA allowed pilots to be able to fly while on antidepressants.
The new policy was put into place to improve safety and allow pilots to come
forward with their mental issues. I see this as a huge step in the right
direction especially with the fear that many pilots would have by disclosing
personal health information. The new policy allows pilots to fly with mild to
moderate depression as long as they have demonstrated that they were
satisfactorily treated for 12 months. (Ahlers, 2010)
Depression is a mental issue that will affect many pilots
over the years at any age or background and it is important to encourage
depressed pilots to seek the help that they need. On the management side it is important to learn about the issue that will affect our employees so that we are better able to assist them.
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