GPs urged to ‘check-in’ with colleagues facing mental health struggles
NHS Practitioner Health has urged GPs to ‘check-in’ with colleagues who may be struggling with their mental health, as it warned health professionals ‘often wait too long to get help’.
The national GP mental health service has created a suicide prevention guide to coincide with a memorial day for healthcare workers.
One in three health and care professionals who registered with NHS Practitioner Health in 2024/25 disclosed experiencing suicidal thoughts or plans, according to the service.
Since launching in 2008, the service has seen 37,000 registrations, of which 14,200 (38%) were GPs.
Monthly registration for the service fluctuates between 160 and 230 GPs, with higher numbers reported in the winter months.
The new guide is ‘designed to support health and care professionals in responding compassionately and confidently at every stage – before, during, and after a suicide-related crisis’.
It includes ‘advice and tools for preventing, responding, and recovering after an instance of suicide.’
It said: ‘Health and care professionals often wait too long to get help and can face lots of barriers to doing so. A simple check-in from a colleague can be the turning point.
‘Many health and care professionals tell us: “Looking back, the signs were there.” Knowing what to look for in yourself and others helps you spot when someone’s struggling.’
The service saw 6,339 registrations in 2024/25, 39% of whom were from GPs, according to service data.
Chief executive Lucy Warner said the guide’s aim was for health workers ‘to feel confident and supported in talking about suicide, whether that is opening up conversations about difficult feelings, or practical and logistical steps to ensure support after a loss.’
In the UK, one doctor dies by suicide every three weeks, while one nurse takes their own life every single week.
NHS Practitioner Health is available to healthcare staff in England and regulated NHS and care staff in Scotland, receiving £7m funding annually.
The service offers treatment for a range of mental health and addiction issues, supporting health professionals to remain in or return safely to work.
Dr Helen Garr, medical director at NHS Practitioner Health, said ‘Suicide will touch many of us working in health and care, whether through the loss of a patient, a colleague, or in our own personal lives. It can be difficult to know what to do or where to turn for support.
‘Our Navigation guide brings together key resources, guidance, practical tools and most importantly hope in one place to help guide us when we need it most.’
The memorial day, created by the service along with the charity Doctors in Distress, was first held in 2024.
Funding for NHS Practitioner Health will continue for a further three years to 2029, health minister Karin Smyth recently confirmed.
Last year, Pulse revealed NHS England had extended the Practitioner Health contract by a year after plans to cut funding were criticised by the BMA and Doctors’ Association UK (DAUK).
Visit Pulse Reference for details on 140 symptoms, including easily searchable symptoms and categories, offering you a free platform to check symptoms and receive potential diagnoses during consultations.
