A GMC survey on the workplace experiences of doctors warns that workloads, competition for posts, and lack of senior support for development are adversely impacting career hopes.

The study found that 81% of doctors who felt they could progress their career as they wanted were satisfied, and 59% were at very low risk of burnout.

By contrast, of those who did not feel this way, only 33% were satisfied, and just 18% were at very low risk of burnout.

In addition, the survey shows nearly one in five doctors is considering quitting in the UK, while one in eight is thinking about leaving the country to work abroad.

The main reason doctors gave for considering moving abroad was they are 'treated better' in other countries, while the second most common reason was better pay.

Some 43% said they had researched career opportunities in other countries, while 15% reported taking 'hard steps' towards moving abroad, like applying for roles or contacting recruiters.

Charlie Massey, chief executive of the GMC, said: ‘Like any profession, doctors who are disillusioned with their careers will start looking elsewhere. Doctors need to be satisfied, supported, and see a hopeful future for themselves, or we may risk losing their talent and expertise altogether.

‘Achieving this requires modernising the current training system, so it meets the needs of doctors and patients. This is something that requires a concerted effort from the whole healthcare system to drive real change. Efforts need to go further than they have previously, so I'm pleased to see these priorities reflected in the ambitions of the 10-year Health Plan for NHS England, as well as in equivalent strategies across Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.'

The GMC's findings do show marginal improvements in the wellbeing, workloads, risk of burnout, and satisfaction of doctors for the second consecutive year across all four nations of the UK.

However, the data highlights major challenges around general practice, training, and disparities in experiences. The GMC is calling for healthcare systems to address these issues while building on current progress.

The GMC's five calls to action for the healthcare system in the report are:

• Governments and employers must work together to make sure working environments enable doctors to deliver safe and high-quality care
• GPs need additional support, and general practice needs to be made a more appealing career choice
• The training system must be reformed to secure a reliable supply of doctors and educators. Trainers, educators, and doctors in training need more support to protect their time for supervision, learning, and development
• The GMC, alongside the wider healthcare system, must continue to address disparities in experiences between certain groups of doctors
• Healthcare leaders should continue to analyse and promote understanding of how to deliver improvements that address these challenges.

Massey added: ‘Improving the experiences of doctors and their environments correlates with enhanced patient care. It is encouraging to see marginal improvements in wellbeing, but this progress must be nurtured.

‘The health system needs to capitalise on this momentum to drive continued improvements, and our unique data and insights can support workforce planners in achieving this. We are ready to play our part to help shape a future unlocking the potential of doctors, to the benefit of patients.'

Reaction

BMA council chair Dr Tom Dolphin said: ‘This report shows the very real impact of what happens when a service does not value and support its staff: they will continue to choose to leave.

‘We face a bizarre contradiction: we still have near record-high waiting lists and patients are desperate to be seen by doctors, but at the same time able and enthusiastic doctors are forced to consider moving abroad because they see no future in the UK.'

He added: ‘The solutions to this problem are clear: ensure there are enough roles to keep doctors who have put such time and effort into their training here, while ensuring these jobs are supportive and paid well enough to stop the haemorrhaging of UK doctors overseas when patients and the NHS need them most.'

Chief executive of NHS Providers, Daniel Elkeles, said: ‘It is encouraging to see ‘green shoots' emerging, including improvements in doctors' workplace experiences for the second year in a row, and a reduction in burnout risk.

‘That is testament to the hard work put in by trusts to address these concerns. But more needs to be done to get back to where we were before the pandemic, and it's a real concern that disabled and ethnic minority doctors continue to report worse experiences overall than white doctors. Tackling these issues is an important step towards restoring much-needed positivity in the profession, particularly following the harm caused by industrial action.

‘Planned NHS reforms and the forthcoming 10-year workforce plan present a real opportunity to build on progress.'

Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: ‘These latest findings from the GMC are deeply concerning but will come as no surprise for GPs who have been struggling with high workloads and longstanding shortcomings in resourcing and training.'

 

She added: ‘The major challenges identified in this report must be addressed as a matter of urgency, otherwise the cycle of burnout will continue, and it's patients who will ultimately feel the effects.'

Luisa Pettigrew, senior policy fellow at the Health Foundation, said: ‘This report confirms that GPs are the least satisfied among doctors in the UK and our previous analysis shows they are also among the most stressed and overworked internationally.

‘The GMC report highlights that overall one third of all doctors remain dissatisfied with their day-to-day work, which is why a refreshed workforce plan is urgently needed. For general practice the focus must be on improving retention, aligning incentives to enable the recruitment of newly qualified GPs and creating better working conditions. Without it, we risk losing more GPs and communities will feel the impact through reduced access to vital primary care services.'

Nuffield Trust senior fellow, Billy Palmer, said: ‘Pay and industrial action have been a lightning rod for dissatisfaction among doctors, but this survey puts a spotlight on the wider difficulties facing the medical profession. Some measures have improved in recent years, but with two-in-five doctors finding it difficult to provide sufficient patient care weekly and one-in-three dissatisfied with their day-to-day work, this is a sharp reminder that bold policymaking is needed to address medical workforce issues.'

He added: ‘Job guarantees, better rotas and placements, and protection of training time all need to be on the table. Addressing the burden of medical graduates' student debt by gradually writing off loans could also be a promising way to reward doctors' NHS service.'