Workload |
'It’s probably workload, obviously. The practice closes one to two, so really there shouldn’t be anybody turning up. Like, there’s no need for a GP to be in the building for that time. But there’s always paperwork, blood results, overdue phone calls that need done…' (GP102, female)'I often intend to go for a walk for 20 minutes at lunchtime, but sometimes the workload is so heavy that you think, well, if I go for a walk for 20 minutes at lunchtime, I’m going to be staying 20 minutes later at work … Some GPs, and I suppose I’m tempted now, bring a flask and have a cup of tea at their desk rather than having to walk down to the kitchen and waste five minutes doing that, you know, it’s just, it’s just the time pressure, isn’t it?' (GP111, male)'If I wasn’t in the room, which is the furthest from the waiting room, I might consider it … I think the human touch is very good, but yeah, by the time I walk to the waiting room and walk back again it takes too long.' (GP 110, male) |
Climate and seasonality |
'I guess during winter time I find it very difficult to get up in the morning in the ice and the cold to get out for any sort of exercise.' (GP109, female)'If it’s wet and dreary, I probably prefer just to push on with some work rather than head out to walk and get soaked.' (GP102, female) |
Physical surroundings |
'It’s a really tiny practice, so we don’t have long corridors or stairs or anything like that.' (GP108, female)'When I was in my previous practice, I sometimes would have gone out for even a 15–20-minute walk. There was a small walkway by the practice I was working at. So sometimes would have done that just to clear the head but there’s not really the same opportunities to do that in my current workplace … It wouldn’t be the most appealing place to go for a walk whereas the country practice I was in before had a dedicated eco-garden and walkway, which was quite pleasant.' (GP 113, male)'Just the way my room is set up, we have shelves above our desks so … I thought there was going to be a lot of hassle, trying to practically install it.' (GP 102, female) |
Telemedicine |
'Prior to the pandemic, prior to doing telephone triage, I would have walked, I’m not going to pretend it was much, but it would have been a bit more because we didn’t, you know, we would have gone out and called patients. At least you got up. Whereas on the telephone you just literally sit in your chair and that’s you, you know, for three hours solid and then you see the three or four patients you have booked in, so there’s very little opportunity for activity at all in the workplace. But I don’t know how you change that.' (GP112, female)'At the moment telephone triage is making us all slower and fatter.' (GP110, male)'If you wanted to make changes you could use [telemedicine] as a positive. Because obviously if you do a telephone consultation, you could make a handstand or lie in your bed or sit or stand, whatever, you know, it wouldn’t make much of a difference. It would be different, of course, if you have a video consultation. Then you also need to have a comfortable relaxed body language, which is probably better to achieve when you’re sitting. But if it’s just a plain telephone consultation, you could do it standing.' (GP104, male) |