Initiative seeks to assure doctors that it’s OK not to be OK

Depression, anxiety, stress and the uncertainty of tackling an unknown, deadly disease that spread around the world in a matter of weeks was almost too much to bear for most people who have had to live through it. But these emotions are compounded tenfold in the medical community.

A recent study in China found that training physicians’ daily moods decreased significantly during the pandemic, along with an increase in depression and anxiety.

The study did not even study physicians in the region on a broader scale.

Suicide rates among doctors are reported to be 2.5 times more likely than the rest of the population.

In 2017, physician Pamela Wible wrote about and investigated high suicide rates among doctors and their families.

In her TEDMED talk in 2015, she said that doctors’ increased suicide rates had been reported since 1858, but that the root cause has still not been addressed.

Wible noted that doctors are “masters of disguise”, but routinely suffer from burnout and “inhumane” work conditions, often involving sleep deprivation.

Patients and colleagues often do not pick up on mental health concerns, stress or fatigue until it is too late.

And doctors are only human. A tough cycle of impossible hours and lack of sleep means mistakes will be made, but uncertainty amid the Covid-19 pandemic could increase these already disproportionately higher suicide rates even more.

With Africa’s already overburdened healthcare system, these woes could snowball, with Zambia-based medical doctor Naeem Dalal warning that a lack of resources and finances could escalate anxiety surrounding Covid-19 among doctors on the continent.

Dalal said that the death of one doctor in Zambia amounts to a loss for over 10,000 people. He added that he has already had to make the decision of who lives and dies based on available resources, but pointed out that in developed regions, these decisions only had to be made when their healthcare systems were severely strained.

Dalal lamented that over 22% of the world’s burden of disease affects Africa, but the continent only has access to 3% of healthcare workers, and less than 1% of global financial resources.

As South Africa grapples with an increase in the number of Covid-19 infections, the challenges faced by healthcare workers are more significant than ever, said Cipla South Africa CEO Paul Miller.

He added that this affects qualified doctors and medical students alike, especially those currently doing their community service, where life and death cases are dealt with daily.

Miller said that even though there is a lack of research on mental health in the country, South African studies compared to more developed healthcare systems still indicated high levels of burnout.

But despite burnout, anxiety and depression being so common in the medical community, Miller said there was still stigma surrounding mental health, even by doctors, who are able to recognise symptoms of depression before they wreak havoc.

“That’s one of the reasons why people and medical professionals find it difficult to have this conversation,” he lamented.

However, to try and combat mental health challenges among doctors and students, Millar said it was imperative that everyone spreads the message around mental health “that it’s OK not to be OK, and that there is help and there is hope for mental health.”

As such, Cipla and SADAG partnered to come up with the #Socks4Docs campaign, launched on Friday, to encourage healthcare professionals to start a conversation around mental health.

“The central message of the campaign is that doctors are just like everyone else – simply humans, dealing with a lot of ‘stuff’, in a world that relies heavily on them.

“By doing something as fun and simple as wearing colourful, funky socks on Friday, 5 June, South Africans will be (literally) standing in solidarity alongside these extremely important members of our society,” said Miller.

The campaign was started by Australian doctor Geoff Toogood, who had personal experiences battling depression and anxiety. It seeks to reduce the stigma associated with mental health, and aims to decrease suicide rates among healthcare professionals, by raising awareness.

And to show solidarity with medical professionals, Cipla donated funky socks to medical professionals around the country.

“It’s important that everyone – including healthcare professionals – break the stigma around mental health, and remember that there is help and there is hope.

“This campaign is an important opportunity for each and every one of us to ‘care for our carers’, especially considering the challenging circumstances that medical professionals are currently working in,” said Miller.

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