News Release

Insecurity About Career Path Is Biggest Stress For Young Doctors

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BMJ

(Insecurity about progression is an added stress for senior house officers)

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Probably the most important cause of stress among many senior house officers is insecurity about their career progression, write Charles Galasko and Barry Jackson from the Royal College of Surgeons of England in this week's BMJ.

In their letter Galasko and Jackson comment that by means of coping with the ‘new deal' on reducing junior doctors' working hours, the Government recruited hundreds of additional senior house officers. However, claim the authors, they did not increase the number of consultant and specialist registrar posts into which these extra recruits can move once their training is completed, which has now left too many people chasing too few posts.

The authors undertook a strawpoll of surgical senior house officers and found that anxieties about career progression is the main cause of stress. Galasko and Jackson conclude that unless this mismatch is reduced by an increase in the numbers of consultants and specialist registrar posts, stress, and the adverse effect is has on individuals and patients, is likely to increase further.

Contact:

Charles Galasko, Chairman, Training Board or Barry Jackson, President, Royal College of Surgeons of England, London

t: +44 171 405 3474

f: +44 171 831 9438

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