Doctor commits suicide at hospital as SWAT team responds

A 43-year-old physician took his own life early Tuesday, hours after barricading himself in a room at Froedtert Hospital.

The Milwaukee County Sheriff ’s Office identified the man as Wayne A. Hendrix of New Berlin. He is listed as a resident in anesthesiology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. A hospital spokeswoman confirmed the suicide, but declined to elaborate.

According to the Sheriff ’s Office, deputies were called to the hospital around 10:30 p.m. on Christmas Day on a report that Hendrix had pointed a gun at another worker and threatened to kill himself.

SWAT team members, deputies and hospital security evacuated the area and searched for Hendrix. The Sheriff’s Office said he was was found barricaded in a room and did not respond to attempts to negotiate with him. He was later found dead in the room. However, authorities did not disclose how he died.

He was pronounced dead at 3:35 a.m. Tuesday. An autopsy was scheduled.

“Out of respect for the family of the individual, we ask for your support to allow them to grieve privately,” Froedtert Hospital said in a statement.

Officials declined to say whether Hendrix, who attended medical school at the University of Utah, was at Froedtert as a patient or physician at the time of his death.

Medical college officials declined to answer questions about Hendrix, releasing only a statement: “Our hearts go out to the family, colleagues and friends who are grieving during this difficult time.”

Suicide is the No. 1 cause of death among male resident physicians in the U.S., according to a study published in May in the journal Academic Medicine.

Researchers studied information on more than 380,000 resident physicians between 2000 and 2014. The study identified 324 deaths among doctors who graduated from medical school and were training in their specialties during that time period and compared them with data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Death Index.

Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among medical residents, behind cancer, but the most common cause of death among male residents.