As shown in the timeliness gap analysis, delays in providing treatment are attributable to stress and depression. Absenteeism, as indicated by the British Medical Association (2015), is caused by stress and depression in the consultation rooms and wards, and this impacts negatively on the utility of the hospital resources. A review of the effective gap analysis is an extrapolation of expected effects of absenteeism from the clinical centers. The physicians often seek sick-leaves in which case they are still being paid for services they do not deliver.
Consequently, the allocation and utility of resources in the health care setting becomes questionable as a result of doctors decreased capacity to handle his/her clients. Equitable Gap analysis Depression in doctors is a critical issue in the healthcare setting due to its adverse impact on the health care pillars that support access to best medical care. Interestingly, the equitable gap analysis looks at the depressed doctor as a patient who should seek medical attention from his/her colleagues in the medical profession. It has been shown that physicians who suffer from depression will most likely evade treatment to avoid revealing his/her status to the health care system. …show more content…
A study by Gold, Sen, and Schwenk (2013) found that the doctors failed to seek treatment to avoid breaching confidentiality of their health status that may adversely affect their professional practice. However, the impact of doctor’s depression on the patient’s equity is not reviewed as it has little or no impact. Opportunity for Improvement The depression of physicians persists to be a concern in the health care sector as it impacts adversely on the quality of care provided. The patient, who is the primary client in the clinical setting fails to get his/her required medical attention as a result of incapacitation of the doctors. As shown by Aguocha, et al., (2015), stress and depression impact negatively on both the doctors in the practice, interns and those in training. Losing close to 400 physicians to suicide annually is alarming as a lot of resources go to waste and the government, and the general population does not get the real value of its investment in training the doctors. Additionally, as indicated by Shanafeit, et al. (2010), the safety of the patients is in turmoil if the depression in doctors is not countered through the implementation of support services. The overall impact of the physician 's depression translates to services that fall short of being patient-centered and lead to an overwhelming patient 's dissatisfaction. The patient can no longer get timely care prompted by the physician 's absenteeism due to sick-offs as a result of depression and burnouts. The gap analysis in the quality of care as brought about by depression in doctors provides a realistic room for improvement. Studies have shown that physicians neither report their depression cases nor seek medical treatment as a cautious step to avoid withdrawal of the license of professional practice (Gold, Sen, and Schwenk, 2013). The physicians fear being declared incompetent or incapacitated to provide professional medical care as this may affect the quality of life they lead. Dealing with the stigmatization against depressed doctors is one of the valuable steps that should be taken to avoid the negative impacts it poses to the patient’s care. The health care system needs to acknowledge that rigorous medical training and the subsequent professional practice is a recipe for stress and depression and should come up with stress management programs that are specifically targeted to the clinicians. The clinicians when on training have a lot of materials to read in combination with numerous laboratory skills. The time to relax is, therefore, limited and they start being stressed during their training and this extends to their internship and the early of years of practice. The doctor becomes susceptible to full-blown depression. The physicians can be assisted through continuous stress management in the course of their training and clinical practice. The working environment of the physicians can be traumatizing especially when they handle accident victims or dying patients and affects their psychological alertness. Additionally, the safety of the patients can be improved if the