Stop The Stress Of Medicine

THE STRESS OF MEDICINE If you’re a physician and feeling stressed, welcome to the club. The practice of medicine is becoming more demanding, continually changing and it will never go back to what it was in the ‘good old days’ A recent survey showed that major stresses in medical practice include: • Demands of the Job: Overload, new research, meeting patient expectations in the age of internet medicine • Time Pressure: Balancing work and family • Finding coverage especially for rural physicians and specialists • Patients: difficult, demanding, or critical • Barriers to doing a good job: Waiting time for imaging and consultations, shortages of hospital beds and nurses. More form filling • No control over changes and direction of health care. • Isolation: Less camaraderie. In the USA, managed care has slashed the autonomy of many physicians and the 'healthcare' debate is far from over, leaving a lot of uncertainty. In the UK, physicians are confronted with a health service that changes almost weekly, and the prospect of savage funding cuts as well as revalidation hanging over their heads. ABOUT THIS BOOK It’s short and simple. It brings together most, if not all, stress management ideas and relates them to medical practice. Section 1: A brief overview, how to worry constructively and then ways of finding solutions and putting them into action. Section 2: How to get stronger and more equal to the challenges of rapid change and day-to-day stressors of medical practice. Section 3: Blank sheets to help identify particular challenges, make plans for action and monitor progress. Appendices on associated topics. Read it quickly or just dip in. The material might be useful to help your patients as well. You start by:·UNDERSTANDING and ACCEPTING stress symptoms·TAKING CHARGE of your stress levels·WORRYING Effectively. Identifying your sources of stress·USING effective PROBLEM-SOLVING and DECISION-MAKING Then you'll learn:·To RELAX - Deeply and Quickly ·Powerful MENTAL IMAGERY techniques to help you make the changes you want·FOUR HABITS for better Health & Energy·ELEVEN Powerful ATTITUDES ·THREE SKILLS for stress relief and increased enjoyment of life You'll know how to: • Identify painful EMOTIONS and HABITS that create inner stress • Find SUPPORT • Take BREAKS that really help • Take charge of personal HAPPINESS • Make permanent healthy CHANGES The problems facing physicians today are massive, but we need to be strong and support each other in the face of these challenges REVIEWS: "......I find it to be a straightforward, no nonsense and eminently practical primer for busy physicians. The quotations throughout the volume are wonderful. My copy sits in my waiting room for ..... my medical students and physician patients." Dr. Michael F. Myers, M.D. Vancouver, B.C. Dear Dr Rainham, The Chief Medical Officer (England) sent me your book. I am the medical director of a new service in London- called the Practitioner Health Programme (php.nhs.uk). Your book is wonderful- easy to read and digest. Full of really good advice and accessible for the busy doctor. Tell me more about it- where and how can I order more- and how much say to buy 500 copies to distribute amongst practitioner patients. let me know. Thanks,Clare GeradaDear Dave- we have given away 100’s of copies and they are loved and change peoples lives.Martin Dear Dave,Feedback on the book has been fantastically positive - from practitioner patients and clinicians here at PHP. It's a really valuable resource. We’ve handed out the majority to practitioner patients and a few to stakeholders. A number have gone to junior doctors at a recent training eventWe do need to touch base re: further copies.Best wishesMartin The Stress of Medical Practice is I think excellent. The format is very practical, down-to-earth, easy to read and follows a nice, logical format. There is much in it that from my experience in supporting doctors with difficulties here in my clinical practice, is very useful. Dr Robin Philipp, Consultant Occupational and Public Health Physician, and Director, Centre for Health in Employment and the Environment (CHEE), Bristol Royal Infirmary, UKYour book is truly excellent - many congratulations - will surely help lots of people. I am a Somerset GP, and work with our PCT on patient Safety, on Physician Health, and as a GP Appraiser and teach medical students. Andrew Tresidder MB, BChFeedback on the book has been fantastically positive - from practitioner patients and clinicians here at PHP. It's a really valuable resource. We’ve handed out the majority to practitioner patients and a few to stakeholders. A number have gone to junior doctors at a recent training eventWe do need to touch base re: further copies.Best wishesMartin The Stress of Medical Practice is I think excellent. The format is very practical, down-to-earth, easy to read and follows a nice, logical format. There is much in it that from my experience in supporting doctors with difficulties here in my clinical practice, is very useful. Dr Robin Philipp, Consultant Occupational and Public Health Physician, and Director, Centre for Health in Employment and the Environment (CHEE), Bristol