The report highlights:
- A concerning proportion (33%) of doctors reported ‘struggling’ with their workload in 2023
- A quarter of doctors in training (24%) were at high risk of burnout in 2023
- Higher proportions of doctors are report reducing work hours (19% in 2023 and 18% in 2022, compared with 8% in 2021)
- More doctors report declining to take on additional work (41% in 2023 and 42% in 2022, compared with 23% in 2021)
RCPCH President, Professor Steve Turner, said:
Each year the GMC’s workforce report is a welcome insight into the everyday experiences of the medical profession. Today’s data, although concerning, comes as no real surprise. High workload intensities and increasing levels of burnout are at risk of becoming the norm. This is an unacceptable development.
The wellbeing of healthcare workers is imperative in maintaining a safe and sustainable NHS. As a College, we have persistently raised the issue of an overstretched and overworked paediatric, and wider child health workforce. The 2024 report covers data from 250 paediatric doctors, but the findings are consistent with the GMC National Training Survey reported last month; over 1,500 paediatric trainees responded to the survey and over 50% rated the intensity of their workload as very heavy or heavy. RCPCH’s 2024 membership survey also found that 48% of respondents have issues balancing their work and personal life.
RCPCH will continue to support our members and the wider workforce. The Thrive Roadmap statements offer a catalyst for change and a vision of how workplaces could be. Our College Training Charter outlines what is expected from every paediatric training unit in the UK. There are obvious challenges when need is outstripping supply, and paediatric departments are under continued pressure. Our members continue in striving to deliver a world class healthcare service for children and young people, but these latest findings add to earlier signals that the NHS must provide more resource.
If our Government is serious about creating the healthiest generation of children and young people than ever across all four nations, they must immediately turn their attention to child health workforce planning.