Our working environment has changed enormously over the last few decades. The workload, intensity and patient complexity have grown exponentially. In parallel, the time and space that we have at work and at home to recharge and support each other has become massively compressed. My last post looked at the factors that make doctors vulnerable … Continue reading Thriving, not just surviving.
Category: work-life balance
When I had my break from medicine almost 2 years ago, I had no idea what I could do as a career if I chose not to return to clinical practice. I knew that I didn’t want something prescriptive that required yet more training, but had no idea what. I saw the amazing Giles P … Continue reading Giles P Croft Interview: “Do more of what you like and less of what you don’t”
Ever had that feeling that you have too many things to do, all of them important, that you don’t quite know where to start? That feeling that if someone asks you to do one more thing, you are not sure that you will respond in a “constructive” way. You feel keyed up, your chest tight … Continue reading Learn to check your StressOmeter before a crash!
This is the last post that I wrote for Locum Organiser and Medical Exam Prep last year. There are 4 posts in all. They provide some newer suggestions on prevention, much of which link in with the Wheel of Wellbeing Our lives are often frenetic both at home and at work. The last person that … Continue reading Preventing Burnout Part 4 – Increasing our recharge at Home
On qualifying as a GP, I followed a traditional route from trainee to salaried and locum doctor, to partner, trainer, and appraiser. A path that many doctors of my generation have taken. Underneath, I suspected that the anxiety which appeared in my 30’s, as the invincibility of my 20’s faded, would limit my time in … Continue reading Jungle gyms and re-defining success
A follow-up post by Dr Clare Barton who wrote "On Leaving Medicine." Behind the new door: It’s now been over 6 months since I properly left medicine. No more appraisals, off the GMC register, proper door shut stuff. I’ve had lots of the usual questions – do you miss it? Any regrets? Did you want … Continue reading Life after medicine
How often do you start the New Year with optimistic resolutions, which you never see through, despite good intentions? As medics, we are used to setting ourselves SMART goals and objectives. These work for the purposes of appraisal. They commit us to something specific that we can evidence to others. Last year, I discovered a … Continue reading # My 3 words. Reword yourself for the Year Ahead.
Recognise. Prevent. Recover. 