Burnout and job satisfaction among UK doctors
One in five doctors in the UK is at high risk of burnout. In the General Medical Council (GMC) Barometer survey of 2025, 20 percent of doctors met the threshold for a high risk of burnout, double the 10 percent recorded in 2020. Only 55 percent said they were at least somewhat satisfied with their day-to-day work, far below the 75 percent of 2020. Nearly a quarter, 24 percent, had taken a leave of absence because of stress in the previous year, and 39 percent had witnessed patient safety or care being compromised. This report brings together the most important survey data on the working lives of UK doctors. Our overview of doctors in the United Kingdom puts these figures in the context of the wider workforce.
The GMC measures burnout using questions based on the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory. A doctor is classed as being at high risk if they score highly on six or seven of the seven measures, which ask how often work leaves them exhausted, frustrated or worn out. Because the method is the same every year, the results can be compared over time. Other surveys, such as the NHS Staff Survey, use a single question about feeling burnt out and give different percentages, so they should not be combined in one series.
Satisfaction and burnout since 2019
The pandemic years created an unusual pattern. In 2020, a year when much routine work was paused, satisfaction rose to 75 percent and burnout risk fell to 10 percent. Both measures then deteriorated sharply. Satisfaction fell to 70 percent in 2021 and to a low of 50 percent in 2022, while the share at high risk of burnout peaked at 25 percent. Since then there has been a partial recovery: satisfaction was 53 percent in 2023, 59 percent in 2024 and 55 percent in 2025, and burnout risk was 21, 18 and 20 percent. Neither measure has returned to pre-pandemic levels, when 63 percent were satisfied and 16 percent were at high risk.
No full recovery: Satisfaction fell from 75 percent in 2020 to 55 percent in 2025, and burnout risk doubled.
The share of doctors who took leave because of stress has risen every year since 2019, from 12 percent to 14 percent in 2020, 17 percent in 2021, 22 percent in 2022, 23 percent in 2023 and 2024 and 24 percent in 2025. In 2025 the figure was highest for locally employed doctors at 37 percent and doctors in training at 30 percent, compared with 20 percent of GPs and 15 percent of specialists.
Which doctors are most affected
Experiences differ widely between types of doctor. Specialists have become more satisfied, rising from 53 percent in 2023 to 65 percent in 2025. Doctors in training improved slightly from 54 to 58 percent. Locally employed doctors, who are often on short contracts outside formal training, moved the other way: their satisfaction fell from 63 percent in 2024 to 54 percent in 2025, the sharpest drop of any group, and 25 percent were at high risk of burnout. GPs remain the most dissatisfied group, with 47 percent dissatisfied in 2025.
Diverging fortunes: Specialists became more satisfied, while locally employed doctors lost ground.
Pressure on general practice stands out in almost every measure. In 2025, 43 percent of GPs were classed as struggling, meaning they worked beyond their rostered hours and felt unable to cope with their workload at least once a week, compared with 30 percent of all doctors. Sixty percent of GPs said they found it difficult to provide sufficient patient care at least weekly, against 41 percent overall. Our report on the GP workforce looks at the numbers behind this pressure.
Doctors in training: the National Training Survey
The GMC National Training Survey, which every doctor in training is invited to complete, uses the same burnout questions. In 2025, 20 percent of trainees were at high risk of burnout and 41 percent at moderate risk, so 61 percent were at high or moderate risk. The GMC describes the high-risk figure as double pre-pandemic levels, when it stood at 10 percent. In the 2026 survey, published in July 2026, the high-risk share eased slightly to 19 percent, while the combined high or moderate share stayed at 61 percent.
Emergency medicine hardest hit: Almost a third of emergency medicine trainees were at high risk of burnout.
Specialty matters a great deal. Emergency medicine trainees were the most affected, with 30 percent at high risk of burnout in 2025, followed by obstetrics and gynaecology at 23 percent and surgery and medicine at 22 percent each. In public health only 4 percent were at high risk. Work intensity tells a similar story: 70 percent of emergency medicine trainees and 63 percent in obstetrics and gynaecology described their daytime workload as heavy or very heavy, against 42 percent of all trainees. Competition for training posts, covered in our report on specialty training in the UK, adds another source of stress.
Workload, hours and the ability to cope
Heavy workload is the most common pressure. In 2025, 61 percent of doctors worked beyond their rostered hours at least once a week, down from 70 percent in 2022 but still close to the 68 percent of 2019. The share who felt unable to cope with their workload at least weekly was 36 percent, up from 33 percent in 2024 and well above the 28 percent of 2019. Among GPs the figures were higher: in 2024, 80 percent of GPs worked beyond rostered hours weekly and 47 percent felt unable to cope.
Still above 2019: More than a third of doctors felt unable to cope with their workload every week in 2025.
Doctors are responding by protecting themselves. In 2025, 62 percent had made some adjustment because of workload, 38 percent had refused extra work and 19 percent had reduced their contracted hours. Sixty-one percent said it was difficult to take breaks at least once a week. In the NHS Staff Survey 2025 for England, 41.1 percent of medical and dental staff reported feeling unwell because of work-related stress in the previous year, slightly down from 42.2 percent in 2024.
Why doctors are dissatisfied
When dissatisfied doctors were asked why, workload was the leading reason. In 2025, 32 percent of dissatisfied doctors cited high workload or long hours, 19 percent a lack of support and 18 percent each cited compromised or unsafe care, staff shortages, patient expectations and a lack of career progression. Poor pay was named by 15 percent, as were inefficient systems and feeling unvalued. In 2024 pay had been cited by 20 percent, which may reflect the pay awards since then.
Workload first: One in three dissatisfied doctors named high workload or long hours.
When pressure affects patient care
Pressure on doctors has consequences for patients. In 2025, 39 percent of doctors said they had witnessed patient safety or care being compromised in the previous year, compared with 32 percent in 2019 and a peak of 42 percent in 2022. The figure was highest in Wales at 53 percent. Asked what contributed, 63 percent pointed to workload pressure, 62 percent to inadequate staffing, 57 percent to delays to care and 40 percent to fatigue. Confidence in raising concerns about patient care fell from 64 percent to 61 percent.
Staffing and workload: Six in ten doctors linked compromised care to workload and staffing.
The link between pressure and professional standards is not only a patient safety issue. Burnout, stress and ill health can also bring doctors into contact with the regulator. When a health condition affects practice, the GMC has a separate health route within fitness to practise, explained in this guide on health and fitness to practise. The regulator data on complaints and sanctions is covered in our report on GMC fitness to practise statistics.
Autonomy, teamwork and support
There are some positive signals. In 2025, 63 percent of doctors said they had enough autonomy in their work, including 71 percent of GPs, and 71 percent felt part of a supportive team. Doctors receive most support from immediate colleagues: 82 percent said they felt supported by them, compared with 59 percent by senior medical staff and only 38 percent by non-clinical management, down from 42 percent in 2024. Just 35 percent felt they could influence change at work, and 36 percent believed they could progress their career as they wanted.
| Measure (2025) | All doctors | GPs | Doctors in training | Locally employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enough autonomy | 63% | 71% | 57% | 54% |
| Part of a supportive team | 71% | 77% | 74% | 70% |
| Struggling with workload weekly | 30% | 43% | 33% | 28% |
| Took leave due to stress | 24% | 20% | 30% | 37% |
Download this table (CSV) · Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with credit to Business Stats
From burnout to leaving
Burnout feeds directly into decisions to leave. In 2025, 22 percent of doctors said they were likely to leave UK practice in the next 12 months, excluding retirement, and 15 percent planned to move abroad, which for the first time was the single most common planned change. Among doctors thinking of leaving the profession for reasons other than retirement, 72 percent said their current role was harming their wellbeing. Of those planning to move abroad, 77 percent said doctors are treated better elsewhere and 65 percent cited higher pay. The numbers who actually leave are set out in our report on doctors leaving the UK, and pay in our report on UK doctor pay.
How UK doctors compare internationally
International surveys suggest UK family doctors are under particular strain. In the Commonwealth Fund 2022 survey of primary care physicians in ten high-income countries, 71 percent of UK GPs described their job as extremely or very stressful, the highest share of all ten countries alongside Germany, according to an analysis by the Health Foundation. Only 24 percent of UK GPs were extremely or very satisfied with practising medicine, the lowest level alongside France. In the 2025 round, burned-out UK GPs were the most likely of any country to be dissatisfied with their income and workload. A global view of mental health is available in our report on mental health worldwide.
Outlook
The data point to a profession that has stabilised since the low point of 2022 but has not recovered. Satisfaction among specialists is improving, yet locally employed doctors, trainees and GPs remain under heavy pressure, and intentions to leave are at record levels. The next GMC Barometer, due in 2027, will show whether the 2026 resident doctor pay deal and changes to training places make a difference. The make-up of the workforce, including the growing role of international medical graduates, is covered in our related reports.
Doctor wellbeing in numbers
- 20 percent of UK doctors were at high risk of burnout in 2025, double the 10 percent of 2020.
- 55 percent were satisfied with their day-to-day work, down from 75 percent in 2020.
- 24 percent took a leave of absence because of stress in the previous year.
- 30 percent of emergency medicine trainees were at high risk of burnout.
- 39 percent witnessed patient safety or care being compromised.
- 22 percent were likely to leave UK practice within a year, excluding retirement.
Frequently Asked Questions
In the GMC Barometer survey 2025, 20 percent of doctors were at high risk of burnout. In 2020 the figure was 10 percent, and it peaked at 25 percent in 2022.
55 percent of doctors were at least somewhat satisfied with their day-to-day work in 2025, compared with 59 percent in 2024 and 75 percent in 2020.
Locally employed doctors (25 percent) and doctors in training (24 percent) had the highest risk in 2025. Among trainees, emergency medicine was highest at 30 percent.
The most common reason in 2025 was high workload or long hours, cited by 32 percent of dissatisfied doctors, followed by a lack of support at 19 percent.
61 percent of doctors worked beyond their rostered hours at least once a week in 2025. In 2024, 80 percent of GPs did so.
39 percent of doctors witnessed patient safety or care being compromised in 2025. Most linked it to workload pressure (63 percent) and inadequate staffing (62 percent).
22 percent of doctors said they were likely to leave UK practice in the next 12 months in 2025, excluding retirement, and 15 percent planned to move abroad.
In the Commonwealth Fund 2022 survey, 71 percent of UK GPs found their job extremely or very stressful, the highest of ten countries alongside Germany.
General Medical Council - SoMEP Barometer survey 2025.
General Medical Council - Workplace experiences 2026.
General Medical Council - Barometer survey 2024.
General Medical Council - Barometer survey 2023.
General Medical Council - National Training Survey 2025.
General Medical Council - National Training Survey 2026.
NHS Staff Survey - National results briefing 2025.
The Health Foundation - Stressed and overworked, 2023.
The Commonwealth Fund - Burnout among primary care physicians in 10 countries, 2025.