Surviving and thriving in the early years as a new consultant physician.

There has never been a more important time than the present to be aware of the consultant’s job plan and how it can be changed to improve the work/life balance. One-quarter of physicians have considered either giving up clinical practice or taking early retirement due to antisocial working hours, conditions or domestic difficulties. Formal job planning meetings offer an opportunity either to change the existing working week or remuneration for any extra hours worked. By keeping a detailed diary of all professional activities, both direct clinical care and supporting activities, such data can be used to negotiate a job plan which provides a happier and less stressful life. The spiralling commitments for non-clinical professional duties (audit, appraisal, teaching, research, service development) need to be defined, and agreed times allocated to them to ensure they are acceptable to all who are concerned with drawing up a job plan. For many physicians, it will take several years for job plans to become more compatible with a long, rewarding and family friendly career. A physician who has been used to a traditional punishing system of long hours must now diversify to improve a working week that will be beneficial both to present physicians and to those following in the future.