Wellbeing resources for doctors

We know that doctors continue to work in challenging circumstances, and that many of you are feeling stressed and tired.

Taking time for yourself to rest and recharge is important. This will protect your own wellbeing and help you care for your patients.

Useful resources

There's a range of resources available for all UK health workers that can support your wellbeing.

• Supporting our people, from NHS England and NHS Improvement – a comprehensive bank of resources that provide advice on a wide range of topics, including building personal resilience, managing stress and making decisions under pressure. There’s also advice for managers on how to support staff members during a crisis.
• The MindEd Coronavirus staff resilience hub, from Health Education England (HEE) – the hub is open to all frontline healthcare workers and contains resources on how to deal with stress, fear and trauma. It also has advice for managers to help them to better support staff.
• Staff health and wellbeing, from Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland – a package of resources designed to support the wellbeing of health and social care staff. It includes a directory of local helplines for staff within trusts, local GP practices and independent care providers.
• National Wellbeing Hub, from the Scottish Government – this online hub provides health and social care staff with a range of resources they can use to help manage their wellbeing. There’s also advice for managers, to help them support staff during this challenging time.
• The Workforce Specialist Service – a primary care-led, multidisciplinary mental health service with expertise in confidentially treating regulated health and social services professionals including doctors. They specialise in caring for regulated professionals as patients, and as such are experts at the interface between regulation, employment and mental illness and addiction.
• Psychosocial mental health and wellbeing support, from NHS Education for Scotland – a bank of resources for health and social care staff to support their mental health and wellbeing.
• Covid-19 compassion starts with me, from Health Education and Improvement Wales – a compilation of supportive resources and tools for healthcare staff. It provides tips on a wellbeing, compassionate leadership and supporting staff following a traumatic incident.

Support services

It can help to talk to someone if you’re experiencing challenges or dealing with a difficult situation.

Your GP is always on hand to support you, and there are a number of specialist services available that specifically support healthcare workers.

• The BMA counselling service – the confidential helpline is available to all doctors and medical students across the UK, not just BMA members. Partners and dependents aged 16–24 can also use the service. The BMA website also has an extensive directory of support services for doctors who might be struggling with a range of issues.
• NHS staff support line – the free helpline is available to all NHS staff in England. Trained professionals can give you advice on coaching, bereavement care, mental health and financial help. Support via text is also available to doctors any time of day.
• NHS Practitioner Health – a free, confidential NHS service for all doctors and dentists across England and Scotland with mental illness and addiction problems, who are working or looking to return to clinical practice. It can help with issues relating to a mental health concern, including stress or depression or an addiction problem, in particular where these might affect work. The service is provided by health professionals specialising in mental health support to doctors and is available in various locations across England.
• Psychological helplines from Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland – local helplines are available to support healthcare staff across Northern Ireland.
• National Wellbeing Hub support line directory – the hub contains a directory of services for all health and social care staff in Scotland. This can also be broken down by region, so that staff can find support in their area.
• Health for Health Professionals Wales – a free counselling service for all doctors in Wales.

Support with a bereavement

Everyone grieves in their own time and way. If you have recently experienced the loss of a friend, family member, colleague or patient, reaching out to those you trust can help. But if you feel you need additional support, it is available.

• The Scottish Government has also created a directory of organisations to support people in Scotland.
• Health Education and Improvement in Wales has put together a list of organisations that can help people in Wales, if they’ve experienced a bereavement.
• NHS Education for Scotland has put together some short bereavement related videos to help health and social care professionals deal with concerns related to death and bereavement.

Supporting a colleague

Resources are also available if you’re helping a colleague through a bereavement. The BMA has produced a guide on what to do if you’re concerned about a colleague.