Caring for colleagues

Cultivating a healthier future for doctors: Family physicians supporting sick colleagues

This resource about caring for colleagues is a companion document for a Symposium presented at WONCA Europe 2024.

Astier Pena MP, Kay M, Rochfort A. Cultivating a healthier future for doctors: family physicians supporting sick colleagues. (Symposium) WONCA Europe 2024 Conference. “Changing the Nature of Family Medicine. Cultivating the Future.” 25-28 September 2024: Dublin.

A healthy medical profession - caring for ourselves and our colleagues 

This is a two hour training module developed to support doctors to learn more about doctors’ health. This includes a series of modules that discuss:

• Understanding self-care
• Accessing healthcare
• Learning to be a doctor-patient
• Training to be a doctor for a doctor

The interactive module is designed for busy doctors and it is possible to stop and start the module in your own time. If you register with your name, at the end of the module there is a certificate that will be provided to state that the module has been completed. You can join anonymously if you wish, although it is necessary to provide an email address to log in. It is up to the user to determine what state they wish to nominate within the module.

The module is available at the drs4drs website 

Checking in on colleagues

Checking in on colleagues is a vital skill. While we should not treat colleagues in a corridor consultation, we need to remember that when a colleague seems to be struggling, there may be a health issue. Checking in as a caring colleague and even supporting them to access the care they need can help our colleagues conquer the barriers to health access.

This video was made by a medical student to enable us to reflect on what it is really like to work as a doctor and how the kindness of colleagues can make a huge difference in people’s lives.

Some peer reviewed papers relevant to caring for colleagues

• Hutton CJ, Kay M, Round P, Barton C. “Do they think I’m good enough?”: General practitioners’ experiences when treating doctor-patients. BMC Primary Care. 2024; 25:340
• Hutton CJ, Kay M, Round P, Barton C. Doctors’ experiences when treating doctor-patients: a scoping review. BJGP Open. 2023; 7(4):BJGPO.2023.0090.
• Kay M. I know to look after myself – I’m a doctor! O&G Magazine. Winter, 2020; 22(2). Available at: https://www.ogmagazine.org.au/author/margaret-kay/
• Kay M, Dawes V. Working together to ensure health care access for doctors. Med J Aust. 2019; 211(11):497-498.e1
• Kay M, Mitchell G, Clavarino A, Frank E. Developing a framework for understanding doctors’ health access: A qualitative study of Australian GPs. Aust J Prim Health. 2012; 18:158-65
• Kay M, Mitchell G, Clavarino A. What doctors want? A consultation method when the patient is a doctor. Aust J Prim Health. 2010; 16(1):52-59
• Kay M, Mitchell G, Clavarino A, Doust J. Doctors as patients: a systematic review of doctors' health access and the barriers they experience. Br J Gen Pract. 2008; 58(552):501-508

Links to some narrative articles written by doctors who experienced health issues

• Silagy C. A view from the other side. A doctor’s experience of having lymphoma. Aust Fam Physician 2001; 30: 547-549.
• Rabin D, Rabin P, Rabin R. Compounding the ordeal of ALS. Isolation from my fellow physicians. N Engl JMed 1982; 307(8): 506–509.

Books that offer a reflection by doctors about their health

• Klitzman, R. When doctors become patients. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2008
• Bravery, B. Th patient doctor. How one man's cancer diagnosis led to a quest to put the heart back into healthcare. Hachette Australia 2022
• Groopman, J. ‘How doctors think.’ Scribe Publications: Melbourne. 2007

Books relevant to caring for our health

• Rowe L, Abeygunawardana V, Kidd M. “Every doctor. healthier doctors = healthier patients.” 2^nd Ed. CRC Press. 2023.
• Gerada C.(Ed) “Beneath the white coat doctors, Their minds and mental health”. Routledge. 2020.
• Good Medical Practice. TBC

Doctors' Health NSW invites you to join other GPs interested in looking after their colleagues

There is a network of GPs across NSW who support their colleagues by being a doctor for other doctors. AMA NSW and Doctors’ Health NSW maintain this registry to help doctors and medical students to find a GP.

If you are a GP with an interest in doctors’ health and you are able to prioritise appointments for NSW doctors and medical students, we would like to hear from you. By becoming a doctor for doctors, your details will be added to our contact list, to assist doctors and medical students to find specialised help when they need it.

If you are interested in being a doctor for other NSW doctors please complete the expression of interest form below.

Join the list of RANZCP psychiatrists interested in looking after their colleagues

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists offers a list of specialists with experience in treating doctors, psychiatrists and medical students.

To find out more contact RANZCP

There are doctors' health services across Australia - contact us

For doctors and medical students who would like to talk confidentially with an experienced doctor, call our anonymous 24/7 phoneline:

02 9437 6552 - connects you to to the Doctors' Health NSW free phone service

1800 006 888 - the free National Doctors' Health Line connects you to your local doctors' health service, Australia wide 

For general enquiries to Doctors' Health NSW

Phone: 02 9030 7515 for office and administrative enquiries only

Email: admin@dhas.org.au