This Life 21: Mike Carano / Patrick R. Krill

Mike Carano returns joining Patrick R. Krill, director of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation Legal Professionals Program. In this role, Patrick helps attorneys, judges and law students prepare for and overcome the distinctive challenges they face in recovery from chemical dependency.

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Outro Music, “Roxy And Frank” by Mike Carano.

A new study indicates, based solely  on volume and frequency of alcohol consumed, more than one in three practicing  attorneys are problem drinkers. A national survey of approximately 15,000  attorneys (full release with details below), conducted by the American  Bar Association (ABA) and the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, also found:

*21-percent of licensed, employed attorneys qualify as problem
drinkers
*28-percent struggle with some level of depression
*19-percent demonstrate symptoms of anxiety
*Younger attorneys in the first  10 years of practice exhibit
the highest incidence of these problems

ABA, Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation release first national study  on
attorney substance use, mental health concerns

CHICAGO, Feb. 3, 2016 – A new, landmark study conducted by the
Hazelden Betty  Ford Foundation and the American Bar Association
Commission on  Lawyer Assistance Programs reveals substantial and
widespread levels  of problem drinking and other behavioral health
problems in the U.S. legal  profession.
Posted  online this week in the _Journal of Addiction Medicine, _the
study reports that 21 percent of  licensed, employed attorneys qualify
as problem drinkers, 28 percent struggle  with some level of
depression and 19 percent demonstrate symptoms of anxiety.  The study
found that younger attorneys in the first 10 years of practice exhibit
the highest incidence of these problems. The print edition of the
journal will  be available in mid-February.
The  findings of the national study, the most comprehensive ever,
represent a  reversal of previous research that indicated rates of
problem drinking increased  as individuals spent more time in the
legal profession. When focusing solely on  the volume and frequency of
alcohol consumed, more than 1 in 3 practicing  attorneys are problem
drinkers, the study found.
Attorney and clinician Patrick R. Krill, Hazelden’s architect of the
project and lead author of the study, said the findings are a call to
action.
“This  long-overdue study clearly validates the widely held but
empirically  undersupported view that our profession faces truly
significant challenges  related to attorney well-being,” Krill said.
“Any way you look at it, this data  is very alarming, and paints the
picture of an unsustainable professional  culture that’s harming too
many people. Attorney impairment poses risks to the  struggling
individuals themselves and to our communities, government, economy
and society. The stakes are too high for inaction.”
Linda  Albert, a co-author of the study and representative of the ABA
Commission on  Lawyer Assistance Programs, said there are countless
ways this data will benefit  the profession. “While the numbers
themselves are disheartening, the instructive  value of the
information is enormous and tells us that the problem is best
approached from a systems perspective. All sectors of the profession
will  benefit from reading, understanding and utilizing this important
study, and now  we can better develop strategies for preventing and
addressing substance use  problems and mental health concerns in this
population.”
The  study compared attorneys with other professionals, including
doctors, and  determined that lawyers experience alcohol use disorders
at a far higher rate  than other professional populations, as well as
mental health distress that is  more significant. The study also found
that the most common barriers for  attorneys to seek help were fear of
others finding out and general concerns  about confidentiality.
“This  new research demonstrates how the pressures felt by many
lawyers manifest  in health risks,” ABA President Paulette Brown
said. “These ground-breaking  findings provide an important guide as
the ABA commission works with lawyer  assistance programs nationally
to address the mental health risks and needs of  lawyers.”
The  collaborative research project marks the first nationwide
attempt to capture  such data about the legal profession.
Approximately 15,000 attorneys from 19  states and across all regions
of the country participated in the study.
THE HAZELDEN BETTY FORD FOUNDATION helps people  reclaim their lives
from the disease of addiction. It is the nation’s largest  nonprofit
treatment provider, with a legacy that began in 1949 and includes the
1982 founding of the Betty Ford Center. With 16 sites in California,
Minnesota,  Oregon, Illinois, New York, Florida, Massachusetts,
Colorado and Texas, the  Foundation offers prevention and recovery
solutions nationwide and across the  entire continuum of care for
youth and adults. It includes a specialized program  for legal
professionals, the largest recovery publishing house in the country, a
fully-accredited graduate school of addiction studies, an addiction
research  center, an education arm for medical professionals and a
unique children’s  program, and is the nation’s leader in advocacy
and policy for treatment and  recovery. Learn more at
www.hazeldenbettyford.org.