Nearly two-thirds (63%) of trainee doctors consider themselves to be at ‘high’ or ‘moderate’ risk of burnout, according to the latest figures from the General Medical Council (GMC).
Worryingly, in terms of wellbeing and resilience, this figure is now higher than during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, when the percentages were 43% and 56% respectively.
The GMC’s National Training Survey 2024 found more than a fifth of trainees polled (21%) were measured to be at high risk of burnout and more than half (52%) described their work as emotionally exhausting to a very high or high degree.
Burnout in healthcare
CPD: Burnout risks in healthcare
The survey – the largest annual survey of doctors in the UK – asked 74,000 physicians about their working environments, quality of training, wellbeing at work, and workloads. Half of all trainers (50%), too, were measured to be at high or moderate risk of burnout.
The proportion of negative responses from trainees to most of the questions on burnout remained high, despite a slight decrease since 2023, with two-fifths of trainees (40%) feeling burnt out because of their work, the GMC said.
Nearly a quarter of those who responded (24%) said they felt that every working hour was tiring for them and 65% said they always or often felt worn out at the end of the working day.
More than half (52%) felt their work was emotionally exhausting to a high or very high degree. Trainees in emergency medicine posts gave the highest proportion of negative responses, with more than two-thirds (69%) saying their work was emotionally exhausting.
The proportion of negative responses to the burnout questions from trainers had remained broadly similar since 2022, the GMC said.
More than two-thirds (68%) of GP trainers said they always or often feel worn out at the end of the working day, while half of those working in secondary care (49%) said the same.
More than two-fifths (43%) of doctors in training rated the intensity of their work by day as heavy or very heavy, it added.
Despite the slight improvement overall in responses to the questions about wellbeing, the survey results remained “very concerning”, the GMC said. “For the third year running, a quarter of trainers and a third of trainees in emergency medicine posts measured to be at high risk of burnout, suggesting unsustainable workplace pressures have become the norm in this specialty,” the report said.
“Good medical practice states that doctors should take care of their own health and wellbeing needs, recognising and taking appropriate action if they may not be fit to work. While it’s possible that any small positive changes seen in the data may have been driven by doctors taking such steps to protect their own wellbeing, it’s vital that employers prioritise the issue of easing workload stress,” it also argued.
“Improving working conditions for all healthcare staff and supporting the development of fair and inclusive workplaces will help improve retention, reduce workplace pressure, and help to protect patients as well as staff,” the GMC added.
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