Doctor wellbeing a key patient safety concern warns Council

The Medical Council has aunched a doctor wellbeing campaign highlighting how “important it is for doctors to care for themselves” during the current pandemic and cyberattack.

The campaign focuses on the importance of doctors caring for themselves, having a GP and seeking support when needed, in order to continue to care for and treat their patients safely.

“There isn’t a single person in Ireland whose life hasn’t been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic over the last 15 months in some way. This also applies to doctors,” said the Medical Council President, Dr Rita Doyle.

“Doctors have had to change the way they practise, consistently evolving to the changing circumstances, as revised guidance was issued during the various waves of the pandemic.

“As we know from the research, doctor wellbeing and burnout has been an issue in Ireland long before the pandemic and we also know that this can lead to adverse events for patients.

“The cyberattack was the last thing the Irish health service needed. As the health service is trying to return services after the pandemic, the cyber-attack struck. Some doctors have described this as having a far greater negative impact than the pandemic on patient care and their wellbeing.

“While many of the pre-existing issues from before the pandemic remain, the added stresses on the medical profession from Covid-19 and the cyber-attack mean it is now more important than ever before that doctors make the extra effort to care for themselves and to protect their mental and physical health.”

The Medical Council Doctor Wellbeing Campaign features doctors from all branches of the medical profession, at various stages of their careers and from different parts of the country. The campaign is promoting selfcare, the importance of doctors having a GP and highlights resources available for doctors.