ArticleBMJ open2019
Does occupational distress raise the risk of alcohol use, binge-eating, ill health and sleep problems among medical doctors? A UK cross-sectional study.
Article in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02838290 (Occupational Distress in Doctors), which is not on this map. Cited by 34 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Occupational Distress in Doctors: The Effect of an Induction Programme
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 69 citations in OpenAlex.
- Factors associated with occupational fatigue among healthcare workers in Malaysia: a systematic review.BMJ open · 2026Pooled it
- Characterization of Problematic Alcohol Use Among Physicians: A Systematic Review.JAMA network open · 2022Pooled it
- Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance Across Gender of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire-Short Form in Italian Workers.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Article
- Burnout among junior doctors in Spain: prevalence, associated working conditions, and implications for health workforce well-being.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Consequences of a toxic workplace environment on psychological safety in anaesthesia and intensive care: A European survey.European journal of anaesthesiology and intensive care · 2026Article
- Moderating effect of resilience on the associations of perceived stress and anxiety with unhealthy alcohol use and insomnia in Chinese hospital staff.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Disordered eating in office workers is correlated with trauma, stress, emotional regulation, and sleep quality: a cross-sectional screening.AIMS public health · 2026Article
- Article
- Lifestyle Medicine Assessment Scores in Family Medicine Providers.American journal of lifestyle medicine · 2025Article
- Violence in Healthcare Workers Is Associated with Disordered Eating.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Eating Disorders in the Workplace.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Association Between Depression, Anxiety, Quality of Life and Burnout Syndrome with Symptoms of Insomnia in Healthcare Professionals in Montenegro During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Depression, anxiety, and sleep attributes: A cross-sectional study of chiropractic college students.The Journal of chiropractic education · 2025Article
- Exploring Health Promotion Behaviors, Occupational Burnout, and Sleep Disturbances in Traditional Industry Workers.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Alcohol's impact on fine motor skills: Insights from minimally invasive surgical simulation.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Compulsive sexual behavior, sexual functioning problems, and their linkages to substance use among German medical students: exploring the role of sex and trauma exposure.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Medical registrars at the University of the Free State: Burnout, resilience and coping strategies.South African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care · 2023Article
- Mental health and lifestyle behaviors of students in a doctor of chiropractic program.The Journal of chiropractic education · 2023Article
- Impact of Teachers' Post-Traumatic Stress Due to Violence Victimization: Moderated Mediation Effect of Living a Calling.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Prevalence and associated factors of binge eating disorder among Bahraini youth and young adults: a cross-sectional study in a self-selected convenience sample.Journal of eating disorders · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesThis study aims to assess the prevalence of health problems (eg, insomnia, binge-eating, substance use and ill health) among UK doctors and to investigate whether occupational distress increases the risk of health problems.
designThis study reports the analysis of data collected at the baseline stage of a randomised controlled trial (protocol #NCT02838290).
settingDoctors were invited through medical Royal Colleges, the British Medical Association's research panel and a random selection of NHS trusts across various UK regions.
participants417 UK doctors with an equivalent split of gender (48% males) and seniority (49% consultants). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Outcomes were sleep problems (eg, insomnia), alcohol/drug use (eg, binge-drinking), ill health (eg, backache) and binge-eating (eg, uncontrollable eating). Predictor variables were occupational distress (psychiatric morbidity, burnout, job effort, work-life imbalance, coping with stress through self-blame or substances) and work factors (workplace and years practising medicine).
results44% of doctors binge-drank and 5% met the criteria for alcohol dependence; 24%-29% experienced negative emotions after overeating and 8% had a binge-eating disorder; 20%-61% had some type of sleep problem and 12% had severe/moderate insomnia; 69% had fatigue and 19%-29% experienced other types of ill health problems. The results show that occupational distress and job factors increase the odds of doctors using substances, having sleep problems, presenting with frequent symptoms of ill health and binge-eating. For example, burnout increased the risk of all types of sleep problems, eg, difficulty falling/staying asleep, insomnia (OR ≥1.344; p≤0.036). Even taking into consideration whether or not a doctor works in a hospital, the risk of health problems still rises when doctors have signs of occupational distress.
conclusionEarly recognition of occupational distress can prevent health problems among UK doctors that can reduce the quality of patient care because of sickness-related absence.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.