1 in 3 doctors and nurses report depression

1 in 3 doctors and nurses report depression and 1 in 10 experience passive suicidal thoughts, finds landmark new WHO/Europe survey.

Doctors and nurses in Europe are working in conditions that harm their mental health and wellbeing, with a worrying proportion experiencing passive suicidal thoughts or thoughts of hurting themselves.
That’s the key finding of a landmark new WHO/Europe survey released on World Mental Health Day.

The Mental Health of Nurses and Doctors (MeND) survey is the largest to date, with over 90,000 responses collected and analysed from all 27 countries of the European Union, plus Iceland and Norway.

The findings, including country breakdowns, reveal the true cost of years of underinvestment in Europe’s health systems and health workforce.

Key findings

• In the past year, 1 in 3 doctors and nurses experienced bullying or violent threats at work, and 10% experienced physical violence and/or sexual harassment.
• 1 in 4 doctors work more than 50 hours per week. Meanwhile, nearly a third (32%) of doctors and a quarter (25%) of nurses are on temporary employment contracts, which is strongly linked to increased anxiety about job security.
• Among the most concerning findings is that 1 in 10 doctors and nurses said they had thoughts of being ‘better off dead’ or ‘hurting themselves’ in the past two weeks. These so called “passive” suicidal thoughts are known to predict future suicidal behaviour.

Such unsafe work is directly linked with poor mental health. Doctors and nurses who experience violence, work consistently long hours, and work in shifts (especially at night) are much more likely to be depressed and anxious and to have suicidal thoughts. In fact, doctors and nurses show double the prevalence of suicidal thoughts compared to the general population.

“The results of the MeND survey are a stark reminder that Europe’s health systems are only as strong as the people who power them,” said Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe. “1 in 3 doctors and nurses report depression or anxiety, and more than 1 in 10 have thought about ending their lives or hurting themselves. This is an unacceptable burden on those who care for us. It doesn’t have to be this way.

“We can take concrete actions right now, like enforce zero-tolerance for violence and harassment in healthcare workplaces; reform shift patterns and overtime to end the culture of work-till-exhaustion; reduce excessive workloads by investing in smarter recruitment and streamlined workflows, including leveraging the power of digital technologies like AI; and ensure every health worker has access to confidential, stigma-free mental health support.

Driven by purpose despite the pressures

Despite poor mental health and working conditions, 3 out of 4 doctors and 2 out of 3 nurses expressed a strong sense of purpose and meaning in their work and were mostly satisfied with their jobs. This suggests that health workers are passionate and motivated by their work but need tailored support to do their jobs and care for their patients effectively.

“We are physically and mentally exhausted, which unfortunately can sometimes lead to medical errors,” said Mélanie Debarreix, a radiology resident from France. “These working conditions have a huge impact on our mental health and well-being. In France, among medical students, 66% have experienced a depressive episode and 21% have had suicidal thoughts over the past year — three times more than the general population. The way to protect our mental health and well-being would first and foremost include the strict enforcement of the law concerning working hours or mandatory rest after on-call shifts, as well as the allocation of sufficient financial resources to allow us to practice in line with our values. We chose a path of humanity, but that does not mean we stop being human ourselves.”

The backbone of healthcare: its people

Unsafe and unsupported working conditions are linked to stress, anxiety and depression among health workers—and this affects not just them, but also patients and society.

Depending on the country, up to 40% of doctors and nurses with symptoms of depression reported taking sick leave in the past year. Between 11–34% of health workers said they were thinking about leaving their jobs. This loss of capacity can mean that patients face longer waits, reduced quality of care, and health systems lose vital staff. In the end, everyone pays the price.

“Across Europe, the pressures faced by doctors and nurses may look different—whether it’s long hours in one country or temporary contracts in another, or workplace violence in yet another —but the impact on mental health is universal,” said Dr Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat, Director of Health Systems at WHO/Europe. “We measure hospital capacity by counting beds, and surgical outcomes in survival rates—yet too often we fail to measure the wellbeing of those delivering care. These findings show that mental health must be treated as a core performance measure, just like patient safety or hospital capacity. The resilience of our health and care systems is only as good as the resilience of the women and men who
dedicate their lives to caring for others.”

These findings add further weight to WHO/Europe’s 2022 Time to Act report, which concluded that recruitment of health and care workers is not keeping pace with rising demand, putting unbearable pressure on our health systems and health workers. Without action, Europe faces a projected shortage of 940,000 health workers by 2030.

Improving working conditions would help reduce sick leave and discourage staff from leaving altogether, while also attracting more doctors and nurses to the profession. This would help ensure that Europe’s health systems are fit for current and future demographic shifts and population needs, as well as better able to weather future health emergencies The report outlines seven urgent policy actions that countries must take to improve working conditions and change organizational cultures, all of which can be achieved by repurposing existing resources. These are:

1. Zero-tolerance for violence of any kind;
2. Improve shift predictability and flexibility;
3. Manage overtime fairly and build positive workplace culture;
4. Address excessive workloads;
5. Train and hold leaders accountable;
6. Expand access to mental health support; and
7. Conduct regular monitoring and reporting of health worker wellbeing.

“With Europe facing a shortage of nearly one million health workers by 2030, we cannot afford to lose them to burnout, despair, or violence. Their well-being is not only a moral obligation—it is the foundation of safe, high-quality care for every patient,” concluded Dr Kluge. “Let this survey be a much-needed wake-up call to spur action.”