• Eur J Gen Pract · Dec 2024

    'I just felt either I'm going to kill someone or I'm going to end up killing myself'. How does it feel to be burnt out as a practicing UK GP?

    • Ishbel Orla Whitehead, Suzanne Moffatt, and Barbara Hanratty.
    • Faculty of Medical Sciences, Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
    • Eur J Gen Pract. 2024 Dec 1; 30 (1): 24269812426981.

    ObjectiveTo explore how it feels to be a burnt out GP in the NHS.DesignIn depth qualitative interviews with 16 UK GPs with self-declared 'lived experience' of burnout.SettingUnited Kingdom Primary Care.ResultsSeven male and nine female GPs described their experiences of burnout to a peer researcher. Themes identified were exhaustion and depersonalisation, mental and physical illness, identity and existential crises, and finally tenacity and resilience. Participants were self-reflective and described distress, shame, stigma, and guilt, including times of suicidal behaviour and isolation due to their burnout.ConclusionsBurnout threatens a GP's sense of identity, purpose, and functioning in their lives, and ultimately can be life-threatening. Active listening to GP distress and a system wide approach to managing distress and burnout is urgently required.

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