Personal Wellbeing Stories
As medical professionals, we have not always been good at looking after ourselves over the years and many of us have suffered as a result. The first key thing to understand is that it is OK to feel this way and to look for some help. You are not alone even if sometimes you feel it.
The second key fact is that you do have a choice about how you work and the quality of that work is affected by your sense of wellbeing and thus your self-awareness. An elite athlete performs best when their balance of performance, training and rest (both physical and mental) is optimised. Whether a trainee, an SAS surgeon or an established consultant, you are also an elite performer. You have trained hard and continue to do so. To perform at your best needs you to be in the best physical and mental shape that you can be.
Below are stories from colleagues that we hope inspire you and give you some tips on managing your own wellbeing.
Moral injury and the Cwtch
By Hiro Tanaka
Richard Dodds - My Burnout
Richard Dodds, Orthopaedic Surgeon from Royal Berkshire Hospital, discusses his personal wellbeing story and experience of burnout.
On the park bench... a chat with Sue Deakin
Richard Dodds and Tony Clayson chat with Sue Deakin - She talks about workplace pressures for orthopods and how they are going through experiences they’ve not had before.
Tony Clayson - Running on Empty
Tony Clayson, Orthopaedic Surgeon from Wrightington Hospital, discusses his personal wellbeing story and ‘running on empty’. Tony is also Consultant Lead for Staff Wellbeing in his Trust, and featured on a recent BOA Webinar on “Setting up pastoral care and leading on staff wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic”.
Jon Holley - Supporting Our Colleagues
Jon Holley has been a National Medical Director’s Clinical Fellow and is the Co-founder of TEDxNHS. During his orthopaedic registrar training his five month old son died and shortly after his father. Jon suggests ways we can support suffering colleagues, providing practical and sensible suggestions for what to do and say at the time or when they return to work.
Deborah Eastwood - The Importance of a Team
Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Professor Deborah Eastwood, discusses sustaining the love of her job throughout difficult stress situations, burnout statistics in orthopaedics found through a BOA survey and what the orthopaedic community and the BOA can do to support you and each other to work towards a better wellbeing.
What really matters?
By Hiro Tanaka