Warning for the new generation of doctors: Death by overwork

In today's society, we consider the idea of ​​work as religion to be so sacred that opposing it is like a sin. However, the terrible impact of this idea on the medical profession has been explained in depth by experienced doctor and essayist O. P. Yadav. According to him, 'workaholism' or blind devotion to work, which is instilled in today's medical students, has a bad impact not only on their personal health and life, but also on the quality of patient care.

The results of the 'Time Use Survey' conducted by the National Statistical Office of India in 2024 were published in February 2025. It clearly states that Indians are now working much longer and resting less than five years ago. In the eyes of many, this may be a sign of progress, but the reality is much more complex. As Larsen & Toubro chairman S. N. Subramanian said, the idea of ​​a 90-hour workweek may come as a shock to the general public, but it is nothing new to those in the medical profession. O. P. Yadav himself has been working on such a schedule for the past 45 years.

However, to illustrate that this ideal of hard work is not always something to be proud of, the author cites a study by the American College of Surgeons. Of the nearly 8,000 surgeons surveyed, 9 percent said they had made a major medical error in the past three months, with nearly 67 percent of them being due to fatigue and burnout. These errors were caused by mental and physical exhaustion.

On the other hand, a trial of a six-hour workday for nurses in Gothenburg, Sweden, found that working less hours improved their health, reduced sick leave, and allowed them to provide 85 percent more services to patients. It is clear that increasing the amount of work does not increase efficiency, but rather has the opposite effect.

Doctors tell patients, ‘Moderation and a balanced life are the keys to staying healthy’. But do they follow this principle themselves? When the National Education Policy talks about comprehensive education, the ultimate story of success through blood and sweat is forced into medical students. Students are repeatedly told that being a doctor means sacrifice, sleepless nights, and sacrificing personal life.

But the question is—is this sacrifice really necessary? As a doctor, it is important to be dedicated to your work, but should it be at the expense of your personal health? The author says, “Dedication, the ethic of care—these are certainly the main pillars of the medical profession, but it is very dangerous to think that working at the expense of your health is a moral virtue.”

 This blind work culture in the medical profession does not produce humane, sensitive doctors—it produces ‘robot doctors’ who live half their lives. He warns that in the age of artificial intelligence (AI), where doctors are gradually being replaced by technology, if human sensitivity is lost, then the future of the medical profession is even bleaker.

World-renowned physicist Albert Einstein said—“The day technology surpasses human sensitivity, that day the world will be the home of idiots.” The author expresses concern that today’s young doctors are being pushed into a culture where they are sacrificing creativity, family, and mental well-being.

According to him, the 16-hour workday may have been necessary during the Industrial Revolution. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the tireless work of doctors was the need of the hour. But except for such exceptional times, the concept of ‘overwork’ has lost its relevance in today’s technology-rich era. With the help of technology, today we have become much more efficient in diagnosing diseases, operating, treating everything. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the workload and give importance to the mental and physical well-being of doctors.

At this moment, the time has come for the medical profession to make a big decision. Will we take the path of Japan? Where 9,000 companies have imposed excessive overtime in a year, where there is a separate word for death due to excessive work pressure—‘karoshi’? The author warns, “If we choose this path, not only doctors but the entire society will suffer.”

Finally, the author says from his own life experience, “I have worked as a workaholic for 45 years. But now it seems that the philosopher Democritus was right—‘If you want to be happy, work less.’”

This article shows us how doctors have to follow the mantra of ‘work is God’ at the cost of their personal lives, family, and health. Hard work is essential in the medical profession, but it is the need of the hour to cultivate this consciousness that such hard work should not be at the expense of humane feelings, creativity, and well-being.

 In today's world, where technology is easing the burden of many of our jobs, making workaholism the motto of medical education is a wrong perspective. This perspective needs to change if we are to create more sensitive, humane and disciplined doctors of the future. There should be dedication to work, but that dedication should not consume one's existence. So now is the time for self-criticism—to find answers to the question of what the work culture of this profession should be.

One thing can be said—a healthy doctor means a healthy society. And to bring about that health, work balance is first needed. If work consumes one's life, how far can one go with that life? This article forces us to think about that thought.