When you look after your own wellbeing, your patients will thank you for it, you will enjoy work more and will have the time to explore other passions.
A few years ago, I had lunch with a friend and GP, Fran, after she was discharged from hospital following surgery for ovarian cancer.
She was pale and had lost weight but was in good spirits and keen to chat. She told me that she and her husband planned to retire in a few years and pursue their dream of living on a yacht and sailing to range of exotic locations.
Less than a month later, her husband contacted me to let me know she had died. I was so shocked. It was unexpected despite her diagnosis. Her enthusiastic plans for the next stage of life had seemed like a vote of confidence that all would be well. She was in her late fifties and had always worked extremely hard and been involved with several committees as well as a research project. There was little time for other passions, although I know she had a few.
Every few months, I catch up with a group of colleagues over dinner and invariably the conversation turns to work and the challenges facing GPs – the ever-expanding workload, increasing demands and often unrealistic expectations, the continuously expanding unpaid paperwork and endless requests from patients that land in your long To Do pile at the end of each working day.
We are all in our fifties or older and discussions about when to pull the pin come up frequently. With every new iteration of what general practice should look like, how we should be monitored and regulated, the idea of hanging up the stethoscope becomes more attractive.
The recent debacle of attempting to renew our AHPRA registration is just one small example of the many ways bureaucracy frustrates us.
The truth is, most of us enjoy clinical work and seeing patients, but there are increasing obstacles making the job we signed up for more and more difficult to do.
When I thought about Fran and how her dreams for a future were snatched away, I decided to review own work practices.
It was my husband who suggested I look to see how I could make my job as a GP more enjoyable while providing a high standard of care for my patients. I wanted time to pursue my passion for writing and to find the sweet spot for a healthy work/life balance. I have the luxury of being at the later end of my career, where I can sacrifice income if it means that I look forward to going to work.
I opted to reduce my hours slightly, to finish seeing patients earlier so that there was time at the end of the day to check results, do paperwork and clear my emails. I also left a few gaps so that if a patient booked a fifteen-minute slot but needed forty minutes, I could catch up without using my lunchbreak. I scheduled my home visits within work hours instead of squeezing them in after work and I have a couple of emergency slots which can only be booked on the day.
I’ve worked at the same surgery for a long time now and like each of my colleagues, have a loyal following of patients. I decided not to take new patients with my reduced clinical hours as my regulars were having difficulties booking in to see me. This, of course, is not an option for younger GPs who are still building up a clientele but made a huge difference to me. It also has given my younger colleagues the opportunity to build up their own following of patients.
As GPs we inevitably see patients with terminal diagnoses like my colleague Fran – people who will be denied the opportunity to enjoy retirement, pursue dreams of travel or spend time on a passion.
I am not wanting to retire just yet, so made additional important changes to make my work life more pleasurable. I ensure that I have something to look forward to each week, however small. It may be catching up with a friend, doing something fun with the family, doing a fun run or just taking time out to read a good book.
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Each month, I try to ensure there is a weekend where I don’t have other things booked and can go away or spend time doing things I enjoy. I’ll be honest, this doesn’t always work out, but like all of us, I am a work in progress.
Finally, I ensure that at least once a year, I go on a longer holiday with my family. A longer break somewhere beautiful provides time to recalibrate, rest and do other things.
The results have been startling. I am spending more time with patients and the feedback I get is that they appreciate it. I am no longer running 40 minutes behind and feeling anxious when patients present me with long and challenging problems in a 15-minute slot.
The additional time means that I am doing more medical reading, online courses and following up on issues where I have become rusty. I’ve even spent time creating easy-to-find folders on my iPad where I file articles so I can find them easily when needed. All those updated guidelines, recent research and details about a new medication can be hard to recall when you really need them.
All of this means I am more relaxed, am happy to keep working for longer and believe I am providing better quality care. It does mean saying, “no”, when I am asked to slot in extras, and this is hard but is the right decision and ensures that the people I do see get the best of me.
The changes I have made are something I discuss with patients when they present overworked and overwhelmed. I can now speak from a position of practising what I preach when I suggest taking time out and focusing on things aside from work.
I remind them that life is short and unpredictable. None of us is immune from becoming a Fran.
If we delay our plans for when we retire, we may never get to do the things we dream of. It makes far more sense to slot in something to look forward to right now, this week, to mark off a weekend to pursue a passion and to plan a longer trip where you can completely recharge.
When you look after your own wellbeing, your patients will thank you for it, you will enjoy work more and will have the time to explore other passions. Healthcare demand is never ending, however many hours we all work.
It is so much better to set some boundaries, to make our own health a priority and to model appropriate work/life balance.
