There is sadness across Broward's Heath System and among police officers, firefighters and paramedics returning to work for the first time since the loss of Dr. Nabil El Sanadi.
Dr. El Sanadi, the man in charge of the county's heath system, died over the weekend from what police said is a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
He is the second prominent South Florida leader in the last six months to take his own life. Former Miami-Dade Police Director Bobby Parker committed suicide in July.
There are high marks across the board for Dr. El Sanadi who, until his death, ran one of the largest heath systems in the United Sates; a $1.2 billion annual budget. Police said he was found shot inside the restroom of his condo building's lobby Saturday with no signs of foul play.
"I almost just pulled the car over to say, 'Oh my God.' I mean this guy has been just so valuable to the citizens of Fort Lauderdale," Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler said.
Mayor Seiler highlighted all the work El Sanadi did.
"The one thing the people who will never have the chance to say thank you, are all those people that were in an auto accident, all those people who were in the emergency room, those people who were the victim of a crime. The way that we responded to that injury was dictated by Dr. El Sanadi," Mayor Seiler said.
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In July, former Miami-Dade Police Director Robert Parker also committed suicide. The question for many: How could these highly successful men reach such a point?
"We have to recognize that suicide can happen to any of us," said Dr. Scott Poland, Psychologist at Nova Southeastern University.
Dr. Poland said 41,000 people across the country commit suicide each year. He said watch out for: "There are some pretty direct clues most often. People talk about death and suicide. They write about it. They might have dramatic changes in their behavior. They might be making out a will. They might be giving out prized possessions."
Dr. Poland said he hopes this unfortunate tragedy with Dr. El Sanadi will cause more of an outreach when it comes to suicide prevention.
SUICIDE PREVENTION HELP: The National Suicide Prevention Hotline (1-800-273-8255) is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
For additional advice on suicide prevention, click here.
