What do you do if you feel stressed at work?

Most stress is not work related, it may be due to illness or your home circumstances.

The causes of your stress at work include uncertainty, lack of job control, lack of support from others including co-workers, an organisational culture that does not allow for weaknesses, extreme demands (e.g. long hours, high responsibility, high commitment), very low demands leading to boredom, lack of meaning in work, poor work conditions (e.g. noise, poor lighting, lack of space, extreme temperatures, poor ergonomics), repetitive tasks and low pay.

Skills that may help to reduce stress at work include desk and time management, goal setting and problem solving, prioritising, delegating, handling meetings and assertiveness. Other personal strategies can help stress from other causes.

Burnout describes the emotional and psychological results of long continued stress. Your enthusiasm, commitment and conflicting roles can be the starting points for the development of burnout, in which mental and emotional exhaustion can lead to apathy and revulsion.

There is a local scheme to help GPs The Cope scheme

Don't worry - you are not alone. The COPE Scheme will be able to help you by providing:

Counselling on a one to one basis
Organisational advice
Problem solving
Emotional support
http://www.avonlmc.co.uk/copescheme1/

Other organisations that can help include

Sick Doctors trust

We undertake to provide early intervention and treatment for doctors suffering from addiction to alcohol or other drugs, thus protecting patients while offering hope, recovery and rehabilitation to affected colleagues and their families
http://www.sick-doctors-trust.co.uk/

BMA Counselling and Doctors for Doctors Unit,

for help, counselling and personal support tel 08459 200 169. This is a 24 hour service and gives you a choice of immediate access to a counsellor or details of a doctor-adviser who you can call directly

Doctors' suppport line

help with work difficulties, anxiety, depression or family problems. The Support Line is staffed by volunteer doctors to provide peer support for doctors & medical students in the UK
www.doctorssupport.org; tel 0870 765 0001

The Royal Medical Benevolent Fund

has set up a website Support4Doctors that aims to put doctors and their families in touch with a range of organisations who can help.
http://www.support4doctors.org

Useful articles about Stress include

• Predicting stress in general practitioners: 10 year follow up postal survey
• Helping sick doctors

If you have any suggestions about how we can improve this section email them to contact@bristolgpsolutions.org.uk