GPs like me are overworked – we should be allowed to do a 9-5

GPs like me are overworked – we should be allowed to do a 9-5

  • Dr Paul Evans from Gateshead says he often works 12 hour days 
  • He is proposing that doctors like him have an 8-hour working day 
  • If not, he’s worried for fellow doctors as well as their patients  
  • Visit Metro.co.uk to read the full version of this article 

A few weeks ago, Dr Paul Evans looked up from his desk to see it was 7pm. He had been in his GP surgery for 12 hours by this point. 

During that time, he’d spoken to 50 patients, signed 80 prescriptions, received and acted on lab results and attended meetings. 

‘That day, I was sustained only by several lukewarm cups of tea and the odd trip to the toilet,’ the doctor, based in Gateshead, tells Metro.co.uk. 

‘If you were my next patient, how safe would that make you feel?’ 

Dr Paul Evans (pictured) from Gateshead says he often works 12 hour days. He is proposing that doctors like him have an 8-hour working day

Instead of a one-off, Paul says he regularly works up to 14 hours, and knows many fellow GPs do, too. 

‘It’s what I, and many of my colleagues, feel we have to do in order to get our work done and care for as many of our patients as possible.’ 

But it’s left Paul worried for both his fellow doctors as well as his patients. According to the British Medical Association, seeing more than 25 patients per day leads to decision fatigue and patient safety risks. 

It’s on this basis that Paul is calling for GPs to work a standard eight-hour working day, and a 40-hour week. 

He explained: ‘Currently, GPs are usually working when the surgery is open between 8am to 6:30pm Monday to Friday (52.5 hours per week). These hours are packed non-stop with decision after complex decision, then more hours after the surgery closes to perform necessary administrative work.’ 

Paul believes this heavy workload is discouraging young doctors from becoming GPs, too. 

‘After all, a surgery in trouble with burned-out doctors is not one many GPs wish to join.

‘Honestly, the temptation to quit the responsibility of partnership, go locum and set my own hours raises its head frequently. However, I cannot bring myself to walk away from my patients.’ 

And it’s for his patients that Paul is truly worried, feeling that they’re unable to get the care they deserve with stressed doctors. 

It’s to them he appeals when he says, ‘Do you want 40 hours per week of GPs you know and trust, or 52.5 of assorted temporary staff? Which of these do you want for your child, or your elderly relative?’

Visit Metro.co.uk to read the full version of this article.

READ MORE:

Struggling to see a GP? Femail reveals the apps and specialist companies offering appointments and how much they cost 

The GP still WON’T see you now! FIVE MILLION patients last month were unable to get an appointment when they want one, Labour claims

Source: Read Full Article

Previous post At least 14 shot dead including 5-year-old boy and 16 hurt after violent Christmas weekend across US | The Sun
Next post RNLI launch lifeboat on Christmas Day after reveller launches flare