The U.K. Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) has published a tribute to Dr. Joseph John Kaczmarczyk, a 28-year-old radiology trainee in Manchester who committed suicide on 25 November.
"He was happy as a radiologist and had a brilliant future ahead of him," noted Dr. Mark Regi, a consultant vascular interventional radiologist in Sheffield. "I think what I have learnt from his passing is that depression or mental illness can affect anyone and come on very quickly. If it can happen to someone as bright and 'normal' as Joe with a great support network and close family around him, then suicide can affect any one of us."
Known to everyone as Joe, Kaczmarczyk completed his foundation training in Sheffield and spent an additional year as a trust doctor in Sheffield before being appointed to the radiology training scheme in Manchester. Regi wrote that Kaczmarczyk was the brightest radiology trainee he had ever met. He was also the first medical student representative for the British Society of Interventional Radiology and attended the annual scientific meeting on a couple of occasions with posters and presentations, Regi said.
Kaczmarczyk's suicide has had a profound effect on the radiology community and all of those who knew him, according to Regi. He didn't have a history of depression or mental illness and was always able to apply common sense to any given situation and with a smile on his face, Regi said.
"Joe was part of a new breed of radiologists who strongly believed in radiology as a clinical specialty that should own its patients, and planned to use radiology to access sports and trauma medicine," wrote Regi, adding that Kaczmarczyk was a Manchester United fan. "His dream job would have been working at Old Trafford."
In memory of his loss, Kaczmarczyk's family is asking for donations to the Louise Tebooth Foundation, which aims to provide financial assistance to projects and services that support the mental well-being of doctors in England and Wales. It also supports initiatives assisting the bereaved families of doctors who have died by suicide.
The full tribute can be found here.
