Are general practitioners sitting too comfortably? Exploring sedentary behaviour among general practitioners

Subsequently, a systematic review was undertaken to assess current evidence regarding sedentary behaviour among GPs. Following this, a cross-sectional study was conducted where questionnaire and accelerometer data were gathered to determine current levels of sedentary behaviour among GPs. A subsequent semi-structured interview study of 13 GPs investigated their thoughts and perspectives on sedentary behaviour and physical activity.

The qualitative study revealed that many GPs felt frustrated by their lack of physical activity and excessive levels of sedentary time on workdays. Excessive workload was identified as a key contributor to their inability to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour on workdays, with many participants reporting feelings of burnout and fatigue. Given that feelings of burnout and fatigue can be reduced by increasing physical activity, an exploratory accelerometer-measured feasibility study was conducted which examined the relationship between GP movement behaviours with burnout and fatigue.

This involved gathering more accelerometer data examining movement behaviours among GPs, as well as questionnaire data regarding their levels of burnout and fatigue.