The junior doctor in distress: the role of a medical education officer at the systems level.

Young doctors give their own healthcare a low priority. They feel great pressure not to miss shifts due to ill-health — as if this were not a valid reason. They have to be sure they are really sick enough before they would consider asking for help. This attitude to healthcare means that it is even more difficult for young doctors to seek help for a stress-related illness, a mental health issue or for substance misuse, as these are not seen as “real” illnesses. Some of the recommendations that have come from this research may help to overcome these barriers to appropriate healthcare. For example, 82% of respondents felt that hospital administrations should allow doctors time to have an annual checkup, while 42% of respondents agreed that it would make it easier for them if the checkup was compulsory. Certainly, the information we have indicates that hospitals should be actively encouraging their medical staff to have regular medical checkups. This would act as a reminder, create an environment in which medical checkups were seen as the norm and not requiring a reason, and perhaps set up life-long patterns of behaviour.