![]() ![]() My consultant was quick to step in, and the situation was resolved. At one point I was on the receiving end of some unpleasantries from a colleague in another team while trying to make a referral for a patient. It’s the team I work with that has made it so, and perhaps one of the key reasons why, despite all the trials and tribulations, I still love my job. The joy of toastĭespite this, it actually hasn’t been a bad week. We so often go above and beyond for our patients, and that can be to our detriment. I hope it hasn’t been too late for this individual as I was able to signpost them to specific support for doctors, and hopefully offer a plan of action and some cause for optimism in a desperate situation. Sadly, as doctors we know how to put a brave face on and to say and do the right things to reassure those around us, until it’s too late. It quickly became apparent that they were a doctor, and I could feel my heart break as I heard first-hand about the little support they’d had and how warning signs hadn’t been recognised. I’m sadly too used to recognising the warning signs in colleagues, in part from having experienced some of them myself in the past.īut it hit differently when, late into a busy weekend shift, I had a patient clearly struggling with a lot of complex situations which culminated badly. ![]() Burnout is now almost an accepted outcome of being a doctor, with record levels being reported across the profession, especially in emergency medicine. A change is as good as a rest they say, so I was looking forward to different scenery, but to some extent it hit all the harder as we discussed our experiences of colleagues struggling, and of a system that is failing to offer doctors support. Science and Technical Research and DevelopmentĪfter a busy weekend I had a couple of days away from A&E midweek to attend a training day as part of the role I have as a peer supporter.Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities.Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives.Information and Communications Technology.HR, Training and Organisational Development.Health - Medical and Nursing Management.Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance.I’ve been on a variety of late shifts, so I’ve at least been able to enjoy a little sunshine before work. While the sun is shining, and it feels like everyone else has been making the most of barbecues and beer gardens, we’ve had business as usual. ![]() This last week or so has been no different, but in some ways that’s what’s made it worse. This is not because of increased demand, but due to poor staffing and exit block – no beds on the wards means longer stays in A&E for many of our patients, and often the frail and vulnerable people suffer the most. These past two years, the good days are rarer as our A&Es are so often full to the brim. There’s always been good days and bad days, and of course the really awful days that you would rather forget but rarely can. It’s become increasingly difficult recently, and I genuinely fear that the job I love is evolving in ways that make it more and more unsustainable and may, in fact, one day break me. Equally, as a junior doctor working in A&E I must be clear that it is far from sunshine and rainbows all the time (and not just because your average emergency department won’t have any windows). Perhaps an unpopular opinion, but it’s the truth. I’m incredibly lucky to have something that is relatively rare in this world – a job that I love. ![]()
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