Professional resilience in GPs working in areas of socio-economic deprivation: a qualitative study

Background GPs working in areas of high socioeconomic deprivation face particular challenges, and are at increased risk of professional burnout. Understanding how GPs working in such areas perceive professional resilience is important in order to recruit and retain a GP workforce in these areas.

Aim To understand how GPs working in areas of high socioeconomic deprivation consider professional resilience.

Design and setting A qualitative study of GPs practising in deprived areas within one primary care region of England.

Method In total, 14 individual interviews and one focus group of eight participants were undertaken, with sampling to data saturation. A framework approach was used for data analysis.

Results Participants described three key themes relating to resilience. First, resilience was seen as involving flexibility and adaptability. This involved making trade-offs in order to keep going, even if this was imperfect. Second, resilience was enacted through teams rather than through individual strength. Third, resilience required the integration of personal and professional values rather than keeping the two separate. This dynamic adaptive view, with an emphasis on the importance of individuals within teams rather than in isolation, contrasts with the discourse of resilience as a personal characteristic, which should be strengthened at the individual level.

Conclusion Professional resilience is about more than individual strength. Policies to promote professional resilience, particularly in settings such as areas of high socioeconomic deprivation, must recognise the importance of flexibility, adaptability, working as teams, and successful integration between work and personal values.