Adam Kay’s account of life on maternity wards is a hard read, but new findings suggest not much has changed for some doctors working in the field.
On Friday (13 November), the BBC were the first to report on findings from the latest General Medical Council’s national training survey. It revealed doctors training in obstetrics and gynaecology were more at risk of burnout than any other trainee across all specialities.
Image: Ben Whishaw as Adam Kay in This Is Going To Hurt
Completed by almost 52,000 trainee doctors, the survey also found one in three suffered from sleep deprivation.
What’s more, almost one in three said they were apprehensive about approaching a senior colleague with concerns about a patient.
Chief Executive of the GMC Charlie Massey, said: ‘Creating environments where staff are supported, listened to and feel able to raise concerns is essential.’
He told the BBC: ‘Sadly, when we see when things go wrong, it is it is very often because of failures in terms of culture and leadership.’
This Is Going To Hurt
There’s little to reassure doctors in the GMC’s latest findings, which author Adam Kay has described as ‘pretty miserable reading’.
Kay, who left the medical profession 16 years ago, believes the sector may be even worse than when he was working in the NHS. He said: ”There are fewer staff on the wards than ever. I can’t remember the last time I spoke to a doctor in that speciality who wasn’t working out what their plan B was, whether that’s going part time, moving to another country, or moving to the pharmaceutical industry.
‘It will always be busy and high pressured, but there are things you can affect. You can affect the number of people who are working there and you can affect the culture.
‘You should be able to speak to your boss. You should be able to go and take a break and go for a cup of tea or a wee, and that’s not the case at the moment.’
Kay’s experiences as a junior doctor formed the basis of his 2017 book, This Is Going To Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor, which was later adapted into the BBC series This Is Going To Hurt, (a still of which can be seen at the top of this article).
In the afterword of his book, Kay leaves readers with a message that feels particularly relevant in light of the GMC’s research.
He writes: ‘Think about the toll the job takes on every healthcare professional, at home and at work. Remember they do an impossible job, to the very best of their abilities.’
Image: BBC/Sister/AMC/Anika Molnar
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