PsychologyOnline urges GPs to seek help to manage burnout with Thinkwell

The wellbeing of GPs is of growing concern following the publication of yet another piece of research claiming that rising stress levels and a lack of job satisfaction are putting the mental health of family doctors at risk.

Last week, the national GP worklife survey found stress levels among family doctors hit their highest recorded level since 1998.

The study found, worryingly, that GPs are less satisfied in their jobs, feel they are working too many hours, and feel they are not appreciated.

It does much to reinforce the findings of a June 2013 poll by medical magazine Pulse, which found nearly half of GPs surveyed are classified as being at high risk of developing burnout of some form.

At PsychologyOnline we welcome any research which raises awareness of so-called GP burnout. We know that our secure instant messaging-based CBT service benefits many people. This could include any family doctors for whom stress and burnout are becoming detrimental to their professional and personal lives.

To complement our NHS services (GPs can refer NHS patients in Surrey), we have recently launched our new Thinkwell™ service offering discreet, confidential access to a qualified therapist for people who would prefer to purchase therapy directly.

Barnaby Perks, CEO at PsychologyOnline, says doctors are “often reluctant to address issues with their own mental health”, and believes the Thinkwell™ service could help.

In addition, one of the biggest barriers in enabling GPs to seek psychological help is the fact many are unwilling to meet a therapist in their geographical location, or cannot find the time to seek help and attend face-to-face consultations on a regular basis.

Barnaby continues: “Our service is discreet and confidential. Users can keep their therapy to themselves, managing their recovery with their therapist without having to visit a consulting room for face-to-face therapy.”

The effectiveness of PsychologyOnline’s therapy was demonstrated in a 300 patient clinical trial published in The Lancet in 2009. An average of just six sessions of online therapy was needed for recovery for patients suffering from moderate to severe depression.

Any GPs feeling overwhelmed can currently benefit from our special offer; a discount of 50% on the initial consultation followed by a 10% discount on any further online treatment sessions.

GPs can access the offer by sending an email to gp@thinkwell.co.uk and inserting the code POL-GP-X913 in the subject line.